Where There Is Pain, There Is Love
by kaito Chidori
Summary: In the small town of Vytal, Ruby and Weiss grew up secretly being the best of friends despite their families hating each other. Eventually though, Ruby had to move away. Eight years later and Weiss is a mess, but when Ruby Rose returns to the small town of Vytal and re-enters Weiss' life, they find out that resuming their secret friendship will not be so easy. WARNING: Self Harm.
1. Starting Where We Left Off

"_Ruby, wait up! I'm not as fast as you!" Weiss whined as she chased after Ruby into the playground, her baby-blue polo dress flailing about as she ran after her friend._

_Ruby crawled into one of the red tubes of the playground and Weiss could hear Ruby giggling as she watched her disappear inside._

_Weiss crawled in after her, finding Ruby sitting inside the tube with a wide grin on her face. Her long black hair splayed out behind her as she sat in the fetal position. Weiss copied Ruby, sitting next to her with their feet pressed against the curved wall of the tube, causing the hem of her dress to fall to her hips as her knees bent to her chest, revealing her snow white leggings._

"_Ruby, why did you make me chase you all the way in here? Couldn't we have just hid behind the bushes like we usually do?" She smiled at Ruby, playfully chastising her._

_Ruby eagerly nodded, her expressive smile never fading. "yeah, but I thought it would be a nice place to give you a gift!" She began digging something out of the pocket of her worn-out shorts, she held the mystery item in her fist towards Weiss._

"_Y-You don't have to give me anything, Ruby. Being your friend already means a lot to me." Weiss stared at Ruby's hand, clearly intrigued by the mysterious gift despite what she had just said._

_Seeing how interested Weiss was, Ruby opened her hand, letting a necklace dangle from her fingers. The necklace had a simple metal rose pendant hanging from it's string. Weiss hesitated at first, no one had ever given her a gift so genuine like this before. She reached out hesitantly, her fingers gently wrapping around the silver pendent as if it might break just from her touch._

_T-Thank you, Ruby...I'll treasure it always." Weiss failed to hold back a stray tear that now ran down her cheek._

"Weiss? Weiss?"

Weiss had completely forgotten where she was as she dreamed of distant memories that somehow brought both pain and happiness all at once. "I-I'm sorry...I was just remembering something."

Ms. Peach leaned back in her chair behind her desk and thought for a moment, tapping her pencil on her desk with a steady rhythm . "Does this day dreaming have anything to do with why you came to see me first thing in the morning?"

Weiss shifted in the chair she sat in, suddenly her school uniform's blazer felt suffocating as she tried to remind herself that she needed to get this off her chest. It wasn't her first session with Miss Peach, Weiss had been seeing the school counselor on her own initiative for a couple of years now. Miss Peach had even kept her promise so far of not letting the Schnee family know about their sessions.

"I-It might…" Weiss finally stammered out.

"I see…" Miss Peach once again pondered for a moment before continuing. "So does this memory involve the Ruby girl from your childhood?"

Weiss silently nodded. She was beyond nervous. Their past sessions usually just involved things regarding her mild depression or family issues that she'd like to keep private, even from said family. "S-She's also kind of the reason why I wanted to talk to you so early in the morning..."

"Well, I'm all ears." Miss Peach clasped her hands onto her desk while giving Weiss a warm smile. "Tell me what's bothering you."

Weiss took a deep breath and collected her thoughts. In all honesty, she had no idea how to explain her problem, if it could be called that. "W-Well...I-I had a dream last night, it was the first time though...b-but it involved Ruby, and…" Weiss trailed off, instinctively trying to stall for time.

"And?" Miss Peach's voice wasn't rushed but instead sounded sincere and calm, reminding Weiss that whatever she wanted to say would be safe and locked away in this very room. Never to be spoken in the outside world. Weiss struggled to subdue the heat growing in her cheeks as she tried to find the best way to explain.

"A-And we did some...intimate things...t-together…" Weiss buried her face into her hands. All she wanted now was to just sink into the floor and maybe die in the process.

"O-Oh, I-I see…" Even Miss Peach couldn't help but blush. "Well, this is certainly a change of pace from our usual sessions."

Weiss barely lifted her head from her hands as she looked up at Miss Peach. "I never mentioned it before, but... I-I've kind of had a crush on her after all these years and, to be completely honest... i-it's been getting worse as I've been having these...urges."

Weiss really didn't want to talk about this, but what choice did she have? It's been driving her crazy for the last couple of months. She's never really thought about sex too much in the past but lately her thoughts about Ruby have been becoming a bit more than just distant memories.

"Weiss, it's perfectly normal to-"

"I know it is! But it's driving me insane, what am I supposed to do when the person I want to shower with love and fuck like rabbits hasn't been a part of my life for eight years!?"

Miss Peach remained silent for a good while, shocked by Weiss' sudden vulgar confession. However, she decided to ignore it and instead focus on the matter at hand. The only problem is that she had no real answer to give the poor girl before her. There wasn't really a cure for falling in love, especially for a love sick, hormone-addled teenager.

"H-How about we talk about this crush of yours...You know, without the...intimate parts. You said you've had a crush on this Ruby girl for years. How long exactly?" Miss Peach grabbed a pencil and notebook that was labeled 'Weiss Schnee' out from a locked drawer in her desk.

Weiss groaned as she once again buried her face into her hands. She gave up on trying to subdue her blushing. "E-Ever since I've known her…She was just so nice to me, despite our difficult situation..."

Miss Peach wrote in the notebook, briefly looking up at Weiss every now and then. "Yes, I remember the story, you two had to keep your friendship a secret because of your feuding families, correct?"

"Yes...it was the only secret in my life that gave me happiness..."

Weiss left Miss Peach's office and into the sea of students in the halls of Vytal Academy. She felt much better after being able to talk with Miss Peach, but deep down she knew that she'd end up visiting her again soon. Just as she was about to head over to her locker, an arm was quickly wrapped around her shoulders and the familiar voice of the school's notorious fashion diva and school reporter, Coco Adel.

"Hey Weiss, been looking everywhere for you, Where have you been?"

"Coco, what have I said about leaning on me?"

Coco chuckled as Weiss' scowled at her "Hey, it's not my fault you're so short. Oh, that reminds me, you won't believe what I heard from Mr. Port today."

Weiss rolled her eyes, ignoring the fact that her height had somehow reminded Coco of some amazing news from Mr. Port. "Let me guess, he's getting married to someone who actually enjoys his old stories? Because that would be a great headline on the school's newspaper."

"Nope, even better. Transfer students, and from what I could gather, their from the city which means I can finally get an outsider's opinion on this boring old town."

Weiss never really thought of Vytal being boring, sure it was kinda small compared to a city, but it had it's charm, being tucked away on the coast while being surround by forested mountains. It was her home town after all and it was certainly a nice place to live. But sadly, Coco was a city girl regardless of the fact that she had never really been to a big city to begin with. Weiss proceed to walk down the hall towards her locker, with Coco Following her while going off about how hot one of the transfer students were.

"Sadly, I couldn't get her name out of Mr. Port. He kept insisting that I'd have to wait until homeroom. Anyways, She's smoking hot, like biker chick hot. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she owned one."

Weiss wasn't really listening to Coco as she was too busy unlocking her locker and grabbing her textbooks. However, one thing stood out in Coco's ramblings that caught her attention. "So wait, you saw these transfer students?"

"Only one of them, but I only got a glimpse of her in the main office."

Weiss closed her locker and the two girls began their trip to homeroom. Unsurprisingly, they were early as Mr. Port hasn't arrived yet. The class was as lively as ever with students sitting on their friends desks, laughing at pranks, and some were even drawing on the whiteboard. Weiss eagerly took her seat at the far left row by the window, dodging a paper airplane in the process. She took out her notebook and pencil so she would be ready to write down anything important. Coco sat next to her, leaning back in her seat with her feet on her desk.

It didn't take long before Mr. Port arrived, with the esteemed Headmaster Ozpin in tow.

"Alright, everyone to your proper seats! Coco, feet off the desk please. Thank you." Mr. Port quickly erased all the graffiti off his whiteboard and then turned to face his class.

"As some of you may have heard, we have two new students attending Vytal Academy today but I'm sure some of you might already known them. Now, without further ado,Miss Yang Xiao Long." Mr. Port gestured over to the door in grandeur fashion. Not a second sooner did a tall blonde haired girl enter the room with her hands stuffed into her brown leather jacket and appeared to be chewing bubblegum.

As she stopped beside Headmaster Ozpin, Yang cocked her hip to the side as she blew a rather large bubble until it popped. "Sup."

The moment Weiss heard the name, she froze. At first she thought she was hearing things but soon enough, she saw the familiar blonde before her. Of course, Yang looked vastly different than she did as a small child, ditching the pig tails and growing a little taller than Weiss would have imagined. Weiss couldn't help but notice that puberty hit the blonde like a truck going 100 miles per hour. But then, a sudden realizing hit her just as hard.

_'No, no no no no...No fucking way...If she's here, than that means...'_

"and last be certainly not least, we have Yang's sister, Ruby Rose." Mr. Port gesture to the door again, but this time no one entered. Port cleared his throat. "Miss Rose, please come into the class room."

it was only a few seconds, but to Weiss, it was eternity. Her heart was pounding against her rib cage as she waited with eyes glued onto the doorway. When the girl in question entered the room, Weiss could have sworn that her heart skipped several beats.

Ruby Rose entered the room hugging a mix of notebooks and textbooks against her red hoodie. Her legs moved slowly, giving Weiss all the time she needed to admire the black pantyhose that covered Ruby's legs, topped off by a pair of form fitting shorts that barely even covered her thighs. The most striking thing though about Ruby was her hair. It was much, much shorter than when she was kid as it now just barely reached her shoulders, framing her face unevenly as one side of her bangs reached down to her chin while the other only met halfway.

"H-Hi." Ruby's voice was eager but she was obviously nervous as she gave the class a small smile.

Weiss wanted to scream. Not in pain or horror. But in joy. She honestly thought she was dreaming. Luckily she was too shocked to even move, let alone speak.

Headmaster Ozpin took a step forward, his cane placed in front of him. "I know some of you may be wondering why they aren't wearing uniforms and you are all probably a bit jealous of the fact." he let out a chuckle as some students rolled their eyes.

"However, this is only temporary as their uniforms haven't arrived yet due to some complications from our suppliers. Anyhow, I hope you all welcome your new, or old depending on who you are, classmates with open arms." without any other words, the prestigious headmaster left the classroom.

Mr. Port looked around the class for a moment, looking for empty seats. "Miss Xiao Long, you will sit in the corner by Pyrrha Nikos. Miss Rose, you'll sit over there in front of Miss Schnee."

Weiss never stopped looking at Ruby as the brunette walked over to the seat in front of her, and for a brief second, Ruby's eyes met hers right as she sat down. Weiss couldn't tell if Ruby remembered her, it had been eight years after all and Ruby was a mere eight years old when she moved away.

For the rest of class, Weiss never once payed attention to Mr. Port as her eyes were glued to the brunette in front of her. She wanted to, no, needed to speak to Ruby.

_'God I have so many things to ask her... Like why she decided to cut her hair, what had she been doing for all these years, and if she likes girls and maybe-...is she looking at me?'_

Ruby was indeed looking at Weiss, right over her shoulder. But it was more a brief glance before returning her gaze at her own desk. A few seconds later, Ruby slowly and deliberately pushed her pencil off the side of her desk and into Weiss' general direction. Weiss watched the pencil hit the floor as a wave of nostalgia washed over her. **'**_So she does remember...__**'**_

Weiss didn't waste anytime as she took the opportunity to pick up and handing the pencil back to Ruby. "H-Here, you dropped this..." of course she stutters. _**'**__Damn it, why am I stuttering!?__**'**_

As Ruby took the pencil, she subtly slid a small note into Weiss' hand with incredible ease. "Thanks..." And with that, Ruby returned to listening to Mr. Port's stories.

Weiss glanced around the room to make sure no one was looking before opening the note.

_{Meet me in the courtyard behind the maintenance shed during lunch.}_

Yep, Ruby remembered alright. Weiss began to reminisce all the times they secretly met behind that same shed when they were children. Weiss looked back up at Ruby, catching the Brunette looking back at her with wide eyes over her shoulder before quickly turning her head back around to face Mr. Port once again.

Lunch couldn't have arrived sooner for Weiss. Of course, she had to lie to Coco and her other friends about where she was going, telling them that she had to stop by the bathroom before lunch. When she arrived behind the shed in the courtyard, Ruby wasn't there. Weiss leaned her back against the wall of the shed as she waited.

_**'**After all these years and she's still as late as ever...'_

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps could be heard, getting closer and closer. Weiss' heart began to race. This was it, the moment Weiss had longed for for years. Just a few more seconds and she would be with Ruby again. She could finally apologize to Ruby, to tell her how she feels, to finally resolve some of her emotional issues that has been caused by their abrupt separation.

"H-Hey, sorry I'm late..." a timid voice broke Weiss out her stupor, turning her head to the left only to find Ruby standing there rather timidly while tugging at the right sleeve of her hoodie.

"H-Hi..." was all Weiss could muster. It was at this moment that Weiss realized how much Ruby had grown. Ruby had a good three, maybe four inches over Weiss. Although, that was mostly because of Weiss' short stature and her status as a late bloomer. If only Weiss was allowed to wear her heels at school, but alas, they were against school dress code.

"Sooo...You've certainly grown quite a bit." Weiss stated, trying to break the awkward silence that was beginning to form.

Ruby let out a familiar giggle before rubbing the back of her neck. "Yeah... but you look almost the same since I last saw you. I mean, you look like you stayed the same height since you were ten."

"Hey! I've grown a bit! ...Just not as much as I'd like..." Weiss crossed her arms, puffing out her cheeks as she pretended to pout.

"H-Hey, Weiss...?" Ruby was quiet as she shifted in place.

Weiss however, was still pretending to pout. "What?"

Without warning, Weiss felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around her with a hand placed behind her head, pressing Weiss' face into Ruby's soft chest. A quiet and restrained sob began to fill her ears.

"R-Ruby, what are yo-"

"I-I know y-you don't l-like being hugged, but I've really missed you a-and I really need a h-hug." Ruby blurted out as she tried not to cry as she squeezed Weiss in her arms, ignoring the fact the Weiss' face was being smothered by her chest.

Weiss couldn't help but have a small smile as she slowly eased up and hugged Ruby back, listening to the sound of Ruby's heart race along with her restrained sobbing. Ruby had always been more open with her emotions than Weiss ever was. "You dolt, I've missed you too."

So there they were, two long lost friends sitting together behind a shed at their school, sharing stories like an old war veterans that hadn't seen each other in decades. Weiss was even laughing for once. A real, honest to god laugh. she couldn't even remember the last time she genuinely laughed out of pure joy. It almost just felt like all a dream to her.

"You lucky dolt, I can't believe you actually got to go see a Menagerie concert live." Weiss and Ruby were talking about one of their favorite bands that popped up around the time they were separated. The band wasn't as popular as most others, but had quite the reputation and it's members often wore masks, hiding their real identities.

Ruby took a sip from her soda can. "Yeah, it was awesome. Too bad it was their last one before disbanding."

Weiss swallowed the bit of her protein bar she was currently eating and pointed at Ruby with an accusatory look. "Okay, I have to ask. Which of their songs is your favorite?"

"Oh, that's easy. 'Not Fall In Love With You', I love that song to death." Ruby took another swig of her soda.

Weiss smiled and sighed. "Of course you of all people would like such a sappy love song."

"Oh please, even you have to admit that's one of their best songs."

"yeah...it is pretty good." Weiss took another bite, smiling as she chewed.

"What about you? Which is your favorite?"

"hmmm..." Weiss hummed as she finished chewing. "Definitely has to be 'Like Morning Follows Night'. That song always made me think about how much I missed our time together, among other things..."

Ruby swirled the soda in her can, smiling solemnly. "Yeah...I'd be lying if it didn't do the same for me. But hey! We're together again and I ain't leaving any time soon." Ruby put up one of her signature giddy smiles.

Weiss nodded with a smile of her own. "Good. So, I have two more questions for you, Ruby Rose." Weiss glared playfully at Ruby.

"Hit me with your best shot, Weiss."

"Well, first one isn't really a question since I kinda know the answer. But anyways, I take it you skipped a grade or two? I mean, our homeroom class is all Seniors and unless my memory is wrong-"

"Which it isn't" Ruby added.

"Right. Anyways, last I checked, you're roughly a year and half younger than I am."

Ruby began to scratch the back of her head as she chuckled sheepishly. "Yeah...I've kinda gotten really into math and science back in middle school and I guess I went a little overboard on the whole education thing for a while."

"Well, regardless, I'm really proud of you Ruby. It takes a lot of studying and persistence to achieve that. And if I'm being honest, I'm a little jealous of the fact too."

"Oh it's no big deal. I'm sure you've been working hard in school too." Ruby said as she took a drink from her soda. "alright, second question."

Weiss ate the last bite of her protein bar before speaking again. This last question meant a lot to her so she had to choose her words carefully.

"So...are you dating anyone?"

Or she could be blunt, blunt works too. Weiss cursed herself as she couldn't come up with any other way to ask the question.

Ruby nearly choked on her soda, coughing her lungs out before Weiss finally hit her on the back a few times. Once Ruby was okay, she tucked a few stray hairs behind her ear and her cheeks began to turn a subtle shade of red.

"T-Thanks...A-And no. I um, I-I haven't really done anything like dating yet...w-what about you?"

"Me? Well...I've had a few dates here an there, but..." Weiss wanted to say_ 'but they weren't you'_ but knew she couldn't, she just couldn't bring herself to confess so soon after Ruby had just came back to Vytal. It would be too much of a risk. "But they weren't exactly my type, I guess..."

Ruby playfully patted Weiss on the shoulder while wearing a sincere smile. "Don't worry, Wiess. You'll find someone eventually."

_**'**You're that someone, you dolt...**'**_ Weiss thought to herself as she checked her watch and was surprised to find that lunch was almost over. "Crap, we need to start heading to class."

Weiss and Ruby gathered up their trash and threw it away at the nearest trashcan. As they headed towards the doors that lead inside the school, Weiss had one more thing to talk about before she and Ruby split ways. However, it seemed Ruby beat her to the punch.

"Hey Weiss...um, a-are we still, you know, suppose to keep our friendship a secret? I wasn't sure, so I sent you that note back in homeroom just in case."

Weiss and Ruby halted in front of the doors that lead back inside the school, Weiss stayed silent for a moment. She didn't want to risk it. Her father was known to never forget old grudges. But then again, She's practically an adult now. Why should she let her father dictate who she befriends? Screw the old bastard.

"I'm afraid so...My father hasn't exactly forgotten what happened..." Weiss just couldn't shake off the shackles her father had on her.

Ruby simply nodded in understanding. "Right...And my uncle still reminds me to-

"Never trust a Schnee." the two girls said in unison before laughing together.

"So, w-when can we hang out again?" Ruby asked as she scratched her right wrist through the sleeve of her hoodie.

"Well, I have fencing after school, so I won't be free until later afternoon...Oh! How about at the Fall Parade this weekend? We can meet up at the Indigo coffee shop on main street."

"That sounds good, I'll see you there." Ruby had a huge smile on her face. God Weiss had missed that smile.

Suddenly and without warning, Ruby hugged Weiss. Holding her tight. "I'm so glad I get to see you again, Weiss."

Weiss' face turned bright ride, she was glad that her face was hidden from Ruby's view. Though, she was also starting to like being short for once in her life as her face was pressed into Ruby's chest once again. "I-I'm glad too. B-But we really should be getting to our classes now."

Weiss and Ruby said their goodbyes before entering the school, going their separate ways. The rest of Weiss' classes went by as usual. She was hoping she'd maybe have a class or two with Ruby other than homeroom, but it seemed fate wasn't very generous to Weiss. At the end of school, She went to the school's Gymnasium. A massive building separated from the rest of the main building. Once inside, she changed into her fencing gear in the girl's locker room and entered the Fencing Club's room where other students were gathered. Along with Winter Schnee, the Fencing Club's instructor and Weiss' older sister.

Winter wore her ever so permanent stern expression as she watched Weiss walk towards the group. Weiss avoided eye contact for the most part, but didn't falter as she held her head up high, just like how she was always taught.

"Now that all of you are here, we can finally begin practice." Winter broke the group into pairs, with Weiss matched up with another girl. Weiss never really kept track of the names of her club members. Hell, the only reason she was still a member was because she had been since grade school and now it was just something to keep her busy.

Weiss and her sparring partner practiced, with Weiss holding back since her partner needed the practice much more than Weiss did. Weiss would parry a few times to keep her partner on their toes, then mix it up and allow her to gain the upper hand. The flurry of sabers was the only thing Weiss focused on. She was completely in the zone.

That is, until she spotted a certain blonde girl walk into the room, distracting her just long enough for her sparring partner to get a point in, causing Weiss to end up falling flat on her ass. Her sparring partner tried to apologize but Weiss shrugged it off and walked over to the blonde girl who enter the room. Weiss knew exactly who it was. Yang Xiao Long.

Weiss didn't know Yang very well, even back when they were children. In fact, the only actual friend Weiss had was Ruby back then. But judging by the way Ruby used to talk about her, Weiss imagined that Yang was a nice and caring person who loved her little sister to death. Once Weiss was right in front of Yang, she immediately felt insecure about her height. Yang was much taller now that she was half a foot away compared to early, back in homeroom. Yang had a good two heads worth of height over Weiss.

Regardless, Weiss took off her protective mask and stuck out her hand in greeting, praying that her voice didn't show how nervous she was. "Hi, can I help you with something?"

Yang just stood there with her arms crossed, blowing a bubble from her bubblegum until it popped. "Nope. I was actually looking for you, Schnee."

Weiss was a bit surprised, did Yang spot her and Ruby? No, if she saw them together, Weiss was sure Yang wouldn't have waited until now to say something. Weiss lowered her arm back down to her side. "O-Oh? Well I, uh-"

"I noticed you were staring at my sister back at homeroom. I'll be honest with you, Schnee. I don't like you. Especially not after what you did to Ruby. Not after you bullied her and made her cry all those years ago."

Weiss opened her mouth but quickly shut it. She wasn't prepared for this. She knew Yang was wrong. She knew the truth but couldn't say it. Yang jabbed her finger into Weiss' chest, her eyes glaring down onto Weiss like a mother bear about ready to kill a hunter who had just shot one of her cubs.

"If I see you go anywhere near my baby sister, I'll break every. single. bone. in your body, Do I make myself clear?"

Weiss couldn't bring herself to speak, so she simply nodded. Yang was much scarier than the little girl with pigtails and a goofy smile that she used to be eight years ago. Yang looked restless but bored all the same, and yet somehow still managed to be intimidating as all hell. Her height and muscular stature certainly helped with the intimidation.

Yang shoved her hands into the pockets of her brown leather jacket and promptly left the room. As soon as the blonde was out of sight, Weiss finally let out a breath she had no idea she was holding.

"Mind telling me what that was about?"

Weiss spun around on her heels, surprised to find Winter standing behind her. "I-It was nothing. She got lost and so I gave her instructions on where she needed to go."

Winter raised one of her brows, clearly not buying it. "Just get back to practicing."

And so, Weiss did just that. She and her sparring partner continued where they left off, but Weiss wasn't in the zone anymore. She kept failing to parry even the easiest of strikes. She couldn't get one single thought out of her head. Just one thought that nagged at the back of her mind.

Ruby was back in her life and Weiss was beyond happy because of it. However, with Ruby's return came new problems to face. Some old problems and some new ones. Currently, Weiss was only aware of two problems she currently faced.

Whether or not she'll confess to Ruby and how to even go about doing it.

And how to keep Yang out of the way in order to continue her relationship with Ruby.

However, Weiss knew that these problems were only the beginning. She knew that as time went on, current problems will only get worse while new ones will sprang up. But Weiss didn't care. Nothing could keep Weiss from being with her best friend and crush, Ruby Rose.


	2. Supply Closet Blues

The day after Ruby returned to Vytal, Weiss had a surprisingly normal morning. The only difference was that she had a slight spring in every step she took as she walked to school. Luckily, it was still early in the morning and so there weren't too many people out and about to see the youngest Schnee daughter's unusual behavior. The people of Vytal were quite the festive people, preparing for Halloween by decorating the streets of downtown with banners and even storefronts joined in with various decorations, ranging from pumpkins and skeletons to witches and mummies. Throughout the entire walk to school, Weiss couldn't escape the nagging feeling that she was forgetting something important that happens this month. Obviously Halloween is one of the things that occur around this time of year, but there was something else. Something that she just couldn't remember. Once Weiss arrived at school, she headed straight for her homeroom class and was quickly disappointed to find that Ruby hadn't arrived yet. Well, at least there was Coco to keep her company until class started.

"Hey Weiss, where the hell were you yesterday at lunch?" Coco was leaning back on her chair, feet resting on her desk.

"Sorry about that, I had to take care of some things for the fencing club. Did I miss anything?" Weiss took her seat and prepared for class, looking up at the doorway every so often as she waited to see Ruby come in.

"Not much, just Penny being Penny and Pyrrha's still fawning over that one blonde boy as usual. What was his name again?"

Weiss rested her chin in her palm, eyes still darting over towards the doorway. "Jaune."

"Oh, Right...Hey Weiss, are you okay? You keep looking at the door like you're expecting someone."

"hmm? Oh, um...I'm just really looking forward to starting our day." Weiss did her best to put on a convincing smile but knew Coco would see right through it. Luckily, Weiss was saved by the bell as Mr Port entered the class before Coco could press any further.

"Good morning Class. Coco, please, feet off the desk! Anyways, we have a busy week starting today-Ah, you two are late..." Mr. port greeted Ruby and Yang as they enter the room.

"Sorry, Mr. Port. We had a hectic morning..." As Ruby took her seat in front of Weiss, She had a forlorn expression and avoided eye contact with not only Weiss, but Mr. Port as well. Yang on the other hand simply looked angry beyond reason as she practically stomped her way over to her desk.

"It's fine, just take your seats. As I was saying, we have a busy week starting today. The school wants the students of each homeroom class to help decorate the school for the Fall Festival at the end of the month. So at the end of the day, you are all to return here in order to receive your orders from the Student Council."

Nearly the whole class groaned in unison, including Weiss. She wasn't exactly on good terms with the Student President, they never really got along and nearly always argued over one thing or another. She just really hoped that she isn't given some difficult task because of their hostilities.

"Don't worry, all of you have been excused from your extracurricular activities until the decorating is done. Now, lets us begin class."

As the class took attendance, Weiss was worrying about Ruby. It was as if an invisible storm cloud was raining over Ruby's head, raining only on her and no one else. Maybe Weiss will have to find opportunities to get Ruby alone and ask her about it. However, that's obviously easier said than done.

* * *

When lunch rolled around, Weiss reluctantly sat with her friends. She would rather spend her lunch time with Ruby but knew if they disappeared too often, people would get suspicious. The sad thing about the whole secret friendship deal was that Weiss didn't even care if her friends knew. Coco, Penny, and Pyrrha wouldn't have cared and in fact would happily be friends with Ruby, too. However, they lived in a small town and news travels fast in small towns. All it would take is one person to spot them together and eventually Weiss' father would hear of it.

"Weiss, earth to Weiss?"

"Huh? Coco, don't wave your hand in front of my face like that."

Coco sat back down across from Weiss and went back to eating. "Hey, you're the one spacing out. What is that, the tenth time today?"

Thirteenth time actually, but Weiss totally wasn't counting, she swears on the Schnee name she wasn't. "Sorry, just a little stressed I guess...by the way, where's Penny? She's usually here before us."

"I think I saw her talking to that Oscar boy again from the Middle School campus." Pyrrha chimed in.

Weiss shook her head in disbelief. She'd never understand what Penny saw in that boy, especially considering the age difference. "Seriously, how old is he again?"

"Fourteen and a half." Coco stated with a mouthful of food.

Weiss and Pyrrha were wide eyed and silent for a good while.

"What? When you're in the school newspaper, you learn a thing or two. And besides, Penny is sixteen going on seventeen, its only a two to three year gap."

"Still, you were oddly specific. Also, the gap may be small, but that doesn't account for mental maturity." Weiss deadpanned

Coco shrugged. "Eh, half the time Penny behaves a few years younger anyways, so it all kind of balances out in the end."

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late! I was busy inviting Oscar to Coco's Halloween party!" Penny plopped down next to Weiss, startling the already stressed out Schnee.

"Halloween party?" Weiss looked over at Coco who simply gave her a cocky smirk.

"Yep, parents are gonna be out of town on Halloween and I don't plan on wasting the opportunity."

Weiss was going to chastise Coco fir such an inappropriate idea of a good time, but she suddenly had an idea. "This party of yours wouldn't happen to be a costume party, would it?"

Coco raised a brow "Yeah it is, why?"

"Oh no reason, no reason at all." Weiss took a bite of her food, wearing a confident and smug smile. Weiss had a feeling that this Halloween is going to be so much fun.

* * *

When school ended, the student's of Mr. Port's homeroom class returned just as they were ordered to. With no teacher around, the students were as active as you'd expect. Paper airplanes soaring across the classroom, some students reading books or magazines, others on their phones, so on and so on. Weiss, however, was texting Ruby who was sitting at her desk right in front of Weiss and facing the whiteboard. To anyone else, it just looked like two people on their phones and just so happened to sit next to each other. As an added step of protection, Weiss even used a nickname for Ruby on her contact list.

"What's a "Dolt"?"

Weiss nearly jumped out of her seat as Coco peaked over her shoulder. "Coco! Don't do that!"

Ruby flinched in the corner of Weiss vision and luckily Coco didn't notice. "oooh~, is it a secret boyfriend~?" Coco tilted her glass down, revealing her eyes as she gave Weiss a knowing look.

Weiss couldn't help but blush at the accusation. Coco wasn't that far off, at least in Weiss' mind she wasn't. "O-Of course not! D-Don't be ridiculous!"

"Whatever you say, feel free to invite him to the party on Halloween." Coco walked over towards Pyrrha's desk where Pyrrha and Yang were talking.

Weiss looked back down at her phone and noticed Ruby had sent another texted.

[Ruby: Did you seriously name me "Dolt" on your phone?]

[Weiss: It's the perfect cover in case someone looked at my phone like Coco just did. Besides, I'm sure you did the same with me on your phone.]

[Ruby: I did no such thing...]

[Weiss: Ruby...]

[Ruby: I named you "Princess"...]

[Weiss: You are such a dork.]

[Ruby: Takes one to know one.]

Weiss rolled her eyes despite Ruby not being able to see her. It wasn't really a bad name but Weiss couldn't help but like it, even if she'd never admit it. She was just about to type in a reply when the Student Council President walked in, clipboard in hand. The mayor's very own daughter, Blake Belladonna and beside her was the Student Council Secretary, Ciel.

"Okay, Class 105, you guys will be in charge of creating banners and posters and setting them around the school, along with whatever event you'll be doing as a class." Blake stared at her clipboard for a moment, reading whatever was written down. "So, you'll all be working in pairs for this week onward. Pyrrha Nikos and Yang Xiao Long, you'll be working on posters. Coco and Velvet, also on posters..."

Blake continued to list off pairs and tasks, some pairs were working on posters while others on banners. As more pairs we called out, Weiss was getting worried when she realized Her and Ruby's names haven't been called yet.

"And finally, Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. You two will work on banners, right after you gather the supplies from the art room."

Weiss knew what Blake was doing. Blake is well aware of the fact that Weiss wasn't exactly the strongest person around, yet she is making her and Ruby go get the buckets of paint and rolls of paper. "Hey, why do we have to go and do it? Shouldn't you send Yang and Pyrrha? They're clearly much stronger and could carry the supplies faster."

Surprisingly, even Yang was a bit angry, but for a completely different reason. "Yeah, and why does my sister have to be paired up with her"

Blake let out an exasperated sigh as she shook her head. "Look, we are in a bit of a rush as we only have several hours a day to get all this done before the Fall Festival. Weiss, just shut up and go with Ruby to get the supplies that we need. Yang, is it? I'm sure your sister doesn't need you babying her."

"I am not babyin-" Without warning, Ruby cut her sister off when she shot up from her seat and turned around to face Yang, looking at her older sister with a scowl on her face

"Yang, just stop it. Come on Weiss..." surprising everyone, Ruby grabbed Weiss' arm and pulled her out of the room without much hesitation while Yang was speechless as she watched them leave the room.

Blake however, didn't think much of it and simple went back to work. "Alright, while we wait for those two to get the paint, everyone else should move all the desks to one side of the room, that way we have room to lay the paper down."

Yang stood there looking at the doorway with a shocked expression. However, her expression quickly turned to one of apathetic boredom as she began grumbling to herself. Pyrrha walked up beside her with a warm smile.

"You okay, Yang?"

"Nope."

"I'm sure you're sister will be fine, Weiss can be quite friendly when-"

"Weiss isn't the problem at the moment..."

"Oh...Well, how about we help with moving the desks out of the way for now?"

* * *

Ruby was practically dragging Weiss down the hall, her hand still gripping Weiss' arm. At first, Weiss didn't really question it as she was too busy being surprised by Ruby's assertive behavior. Ruby usually wasn't ever really assertive back when they were kids, though she would beg for Weiss to play whatever crazy or childish game she wanted to play at any given moment but would never be forceful. Eventually Weiss would give in and simply enjoy her time with Ruby.

For once, Wiess was glad she wasn't wearing heels since Ruby was dragging her so fast that she had already almost stumbled over a few times. After they rounded a corner Ruby stopped dead in her tracks and finally let go of Weiss' arm. She then spun around to face Weiss with a worried expression written all over her face.

"Crap, was that too much? I wasn't really thinking about what I was doing and I just wanted to get our task over with and-"

"Ruby, it's fine...Though, I think you're unusual behavior towards your sister is more worrying." Weiss straightened out her skirt and blazer before walking past Ruby, who was quick to follow after her.

"R-Right...that was, um...we've just had a bad morning is all."

Weiss glanced over at Ruby in the corner of her eye, noticing how she had that same solemn face earlier today. "Well, what about the rest of the day? How are your classes?"

Ruby seemed to welcome the change of topics as she suddenly had the same giddy smile she has whenever she's excited.

"Oh! I'm doing pretty well in them! Jaune and Oscar are in my English class and then I have this kinda awkward girl as my partner in chemistry, I think her name was Penny?"

"I know Penny, she can be a bit odd at first but it's part of her charm I guess."

It didn't take long for Ruby and Weiss to find the art class and luckily the teacher didn't lock the door after leaving. The classroom was a tad bit bigger compared to the usual classrooms in order to fit more larger tables instead of desks. In the back was the supply closet where they kept all the canvases, paint, and any other art supplies needed.

As they entered the supply room, Ruby turned on the light. There were rows of shelves contain everything they needed, but there was one problem. Neither Ruby nor Weiss was tall enough to reach the paint on the top shelves.

"Who the hell puts the paint so high?!" Ruby stomped her foot and began to pout.

Weiss walked a little farther down the row of shelves, finding a folded up old ladder with narrow steps and brought it over to Ruby. "Mrs. Tai, she's surprisingly tall for an asian woman."

"Oh please tell me her first name is Hen." Ruby suppressed a giggle as she watched Weiss unfold the ladder and leaned it against the shelf.

Weiss narrowed her eyes in suspicion. " why would that be funny?"

Ruby began swaying back and forth on her heels with her hands behind her back and an innocent smile on her face."Oh, no reason."

Weiss kept her eyes narrowed as she stared into Ruby's silver eyes. The dark crimsonette looked like a small child playing dumb and Weiss wasn't falling for it. Whatever weird joke Ruby had in mind was clearly inappropriate.

Surprisingly, Weiss decided that some things are best left unknown and simply carry on with their task at hand. "Whatever, just climb up there so we can get back to class."

"why do I have to do it?"

"Ruby, I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not exactly the strongest person in school."

"Yeah, but you fence, right?"

"Fencing isn't about strength, it's about speed and reflexes. Besides...I don't really have the muscle mass to lift it…"

"Why not?" Ruby tilted her head.

Weiss crossed her arms over her flat as a board chest. "I-I'm a late bloomer…"

"Really?" Ruby looked a little dumbfounded, causing Weiss to glare at her.

"Ruby, I have no boobs! It should be fairly obvious!"

Ruby began rubbing the back of her head as she began to blush a little. "I-I haven't really been paying attention to your chest all that much..."

Weiss let out a heavy sigh and uncrossed her arms. Hearing that Ruby doesn't stare at her chest was a hard blow to her confidence. How is she supposed to get Ruby's affection if she didn't have anything to entice her with?

"Whatever. Just go on up there so we can get back to class. I'll hold the ladder for you."

"Alright." Ruby wasted no time and began climbing while Weiss held the ladder in place, but as soon Ruby began climbing, Weiss just couldn't stop staring at Ruby's butt and legs as they came into view. To make matters worse, Ruby's shorts didn't leave anything to the imagination due how tight and form fitting they were. Weiss couldn't decide whether it would have been better or not if Ruby was in the school uniform instead. Screw it, it would have definitely been a million times better if Ruby was wearing the school's uniform. Short skirt and all.

__'Oh god, she has such a big, bubbly butt...damn it, no! Focus, don't be such a pervert, you're better than that! You're a Schnee for crying out loud!'__

Weiss tried to avert her eyes but utterly failed, she just couldn't look away as Ruby's hips swayed ever so slightly with each step she took on the ladder. Every time Ruby lifted her legs to take another step, Weiss could see how Ruby's thigh muscles moved under her skin and pantyhose, stretching the silk fabric until it was taut. Weiss swallowed hard, Ruby may not be as well endowed as her sister, but she definitely had an amazing set of legs with a perfect butt to match.

"Hey Weiss, you're awfully quiet down there." Ruby was pretty high up at this point as she was at least a good five feet off the ground.

"I-I'm just thinking about things..." Weiss was completely entranced by Ruby's shapely butt as the younger girl climbed further up with just a few more steps before reaching the top shelf.

"What'cha thinking about?"

"You're big butt." Weiss blurted out without thinking, immediately covering her mouth with both hands.

"M-My w-wha-aahh!" Ruby slipped off the ladder as she missed the next step. With only a split second to react, Weiss caught Ruby in her arms but collapsed onto the floor with Ruby on top of her. The two girls were in a daze as Weiss hit her head against the tiled floor. The splitting headache Weiss had was quickly ignored when a strange but pleasant sensation filled her hands. They were cupping something soft and squishy and covered by what Weiss could only recognize as some sort of fabric. They were so soft that her dainty fingers sunk into them as she gave the round and mysterious objects a tight and satisfying squeeze, Causing a meek and quiet squeak to echo through the closet.

"W-W-Weiss..." the sound of Ruby's voice broke Weiss out of her trance, her hands freezing with the rest of her body but still held their tight grasp on the enticing mystery objects.

"R-Ruby?" now out of her trance, the splitting headache Weiss was experiencing earlier came back in full force, keeping her from collecting her thoughts properly.

"C-Could you stop g-groping my boobs..." It took a moment for Weiss' brain to process the words she was hearing, but when it did, Weiss remembered what had just happened. The last thing she remembered was fondling pleasantly soft and round objects. The same round and soft objects she still had a surprisingly tight grasp on.

Weiss quickly retracted her hands and crawled backwards away from Ruby until she hit the wall behind her, frantically waving her hands in front of her.. "O-Oh my god, Ruby, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! I swear!"

Ruby sat up as she covered her chest with her arms, her face was as red as her hoodie as she tried to give Weiss a nervous smile. "I-It's okay..."

there was an awkward silence as Weiss and Ruby sat on the floor of the supply closet. Weiss still sitting against the wall and Ruby sitting with her legs crossed and her back partially facing Weiss. It wasn't intentional, but a sudden realization caused Weiss to break the silence.

"Y-You're not wearing a bra?" Weiss thought out loud, once again covering her mouth with her hands. Thinking back on how soft Ruby's breasts were, how they were surprisingly easy to squeeze and grope, it only made since that she wasn't wearing one.

Ruby slowly nodded, clearly still embarrassed by the ordeal. "I-I was in a hurry this morning and forgot to put one on...I-I'm actually not wearing a shirt underneath this hoodie either. It's been really hard to hide that fact all day..." Ruby tried to laugh it off with a small chuckle but she failed to hide her embarrassment as her face was an obvious shade of red.

Weiss felt her cheeks flare up as she imagined Ruby's red hoodie unzipped, revealing her pale and smooth skin underneath. She frantically began shaking her head in vain as the image wouldn't leave her mind. Weiss tried thinking of a topic to change to, anything that didn't involve Ruby and her body. Weiss recalled this morning when Ruby was late for homeroom. The image of a depressed looking Ruby flashed in her mind. Weiss decided now was the best time to bring it up, and besides, it was certainly better than talking about Ruby's boobs.

"You, um, looked pretty gloomy this morning. Did something happen?"

Ruby eyes widened for a few seconds. Almost like she had been caught doing something wrong, but immediately began to smile nervously as she rubbed the back of her neck. "O-Oh, y-you don't have to worry about that...I, um, I-It's just that time of the month, you know?" Ruby ended her words with a nervous laugh and smile.

Weiss knew a fake smile when she saw one and currently Ruby had the worst one Weiss had ever seen. "Ruby, don't lie to me...I'm your friend, you can talk to me if something is bothering you, remember? You always told me that if something was on my mind, I could always rely on you. So let me do the same in return."

Ruby's fake smile slowly turned to a frown. She took a deep breath and sighed, obviously not wanting to talk about whatever is bothering her. "It's nothing, really...Yang got into a fight with Raven and I forgot to set my alarm. Nothing was going well this morning, I guess."

Weiss perked up at the name of Raven. Ruby noticed Weiss' sudden interest and answered her question before she could ask it.

"Me and Yang are living with Raven, she's taking care of us for now..." Ruby stared at her lap as she spoke and her eyes were distant.

"Why aren't you living with your parents?" Weiss asked the question with pure curiosity. She never got to meet Ruby's parents in person but heard great things about them from Ruby when they were younger.

Ruby tensed up and her frown began to tremble as a tear suddenly threatened to fall down her face. She stayed silent as she continued to stare at her own lap. Upon seeing how worked up Ruby was getting, Weiss scooted a little closer to Ruby and found her hand on the floor between them. Weiss placed her own hand over Ruby's in an attempt to comfort her. Upon feeling Weiss' touch, Ruby was startled as she had forgotten Weiss was even there. Ruby didn't bother to lift her gaze away from her lap, but Weiss could tell that she was feeling better as she saw Ruby loosen up.

Ruby opened and closed her mouth several times, struggling to get the words to come out. She looked as if she was trying to force herself to tell a deep and dark secret for the first time in her life. After a few seconds pass, Ruby finally spoke with a meek and cracked voice.

"M-My mom died earlier this year..."

Weiss' eyes widened in shock, she honestly wasn't expecting to hear something so horrible. "Oh god...Ruby, I, I'm so sorry..."

Weiss wanted to say more but she couldn't think of anything else to say. What was she supposed to say, anyways? That it'll be ok? That things will get better? None of these felt right with Weiss as she never had to comfort someone in a situation like this before. She never had the experience of losing a loved one. As Weiss tried to think of what to do, only one thing came to mind. Weiss wrapped Ruby into the tightest hug she could muster and rested Ruby's head on her shoulder as she buried her hand into Ruby's hair. Ruby didn't resist as she spent most of her energy trying not to cry but she couldn't hold back her tears for long.

"T-T-They were d-driving back f-from a date on Valentine's Day a-and...and d-dad was d-drunk a-apparently a-and-"

"Ssshhh, it's okay. You don't have to force yourself to tell me..." Weiss spoke to Ruby with a soft and quiet voice, with one hand placed on the back of Ruby's head and the other gripping the back of Ruby's hoodie. Ruby buried her face into Weiss' shoulder as she gave up on holding back her tears, wrapping her own arms around Weiss as tight as she could. It wasn't a loud or painful cry, but more of a quiet and somber cry mixed with the occasional whimper. It was made obvious to Weiss that Ruby had most likely gotten past the phase of crying her eyes out in sorrow as she wallowed in pain over her mother's death. Sadly though, that pain was clearly still there.

As Weiss listened to Ruby's stifled whimpers, she couldn't help but try to think of how they even got into this situation. They came into this supply closet to get paint for their class, yet one thing led to another in such rapid execution, not bothering to give Weiss or Ruby any time to relax. It was like a roller coaster that somehow lasted only a handful of intense seconds. Nothing seemed to go as planned today, especially for Ruby it seemed.

When Ruby finished crying, she didn't let go of Weiss and remained holding onto her as if she would disappear and leave her alone. However, Weiss delicately pulled Ruby away, but only a few inches so Ruby was still close. Weiss remained calm as she began to speak slowly, hoping her calm tone would spread to Ruby. "As much as I'd like to stay like this and make sure you're okay, we really need to get these supplies back to class. Hell, I'm shocked that they haven't sent someone to look for us yet."

Ruby wiped her tears away from her eyes and nodded. "R-Right...s-sorry you had to see me like this, I-Ow! Why did you just flick my nose!?" she whined as she began to rub the tip of her nose.

"Don't ever be sorry for something like this. If you need a shoulder to cry on, I'd be happy to oblige, got that?" Weiss gave Ruby a reassuring smile which seemed to work for Ruby.

"T-Thanks." Ruby did her best to smile at Weiss but failed to hide a subtle blush. "b-by the way...w-were you really thinking about my, um…"__big butt__"?"

Weiss nearly froze on the spot as her cheeks flared up for the second time. "W-Wha-I, um-"

Without warning, the door to the supply closet burst open with a very angry looking Yang and an exasperated looking Coco standing in the doorway. Weiss immediately scooted away from Ruby as quickly as she could until her back was against the wall once more.

"What the hell is going on here?" Yang's glaring eyes were fixed onto Weiss, petrifying the poor Schnee.

Luckily, Ruby was the one to speak up as Weiss was too nervous to speak properly. "N-Nothing happened! I just fell off the ladder, but Weiss caught me and broke my fall...I'm okay, really!"

Coco took a step forward, cutting Yang off before she could say anything else that might escalate things. "Great, so nobody's hurt. Now can we please hurry up? Blake is getting really pissed that you two are taking so long."

Weiss got up and straightened out her skirt and then helped Ruby up off the floor, ignoring the glare she was receiving from Yang. She may get more trouble from the blonde but at the moment, Weiss didn't care. Ruby needed a friend right now and besides, there was nothing wrong with helping a classmate up off the floor, especially after falling from such a height and then crying their eyes out.

"It'll be a lot faster if you two helped us." Weiss stated as a matter of fact, sharing Coco's eagerness to get back to class.

Coco got the message and immediately climbed up the ladder, handing the buckets of pain down for Yang to grab. "You two can go and get the rolls of paper on the bottom shelf, me and Yang will handle the heavy stuff."

"Got it." Weiss said and went to work.

However, Ruby seemed to be bothered by something as she began rubbing her wrist through her sleeve. Weiss wanted to ask what was wrong but sadly, she held her tongue.

Ruby gestured with her thumb over her shoulder as she looked over towards Yang and Coco. "I actually need to go to the bathroom, I'll meet you guys back in class."

"Kay, Rubes. Just don't take too long, or else the Student President might get even more cranky." Yang said as she lifted two cans of paint in each hand.

Weiss, Coco, and Yang collected the supplies without Ruby and returned to their class to begin their work. Ruby returned not long after and joined Weiss to work on their banner. However, Weiss didn't seem to be having fun with the idea of making decorations.

"I can't believe we're doing this...we aren't in kindergarten anymore." Weiss grumbled as she drew small pumpkins along the edge of the paper.

"Hey, it's not that bad. It's for the festival after all. Remember when we-umm... I mean…" Ruby stopped herself from speaking about past events, fearing that someone might hear. "S-Sorry, I almost slipped up there…" she whispered as she continued to draw on her side of the large paper. Luckily, they were working a good distance from anyone else.

Weiss sighed. She wanted to talk to Ruby like it was normal. Not this beating around the bush and hiding from everyone they knew. "Don't worry about it, Ruby." Weiss whispered as well.

"I wish we could just be open about our friendship...I know Yang doesn't like you but I'm sure she'd come around if she knew the real you." Ruby focused on her drawing of a little wolf as she continued to Whisper.

"I know, but I'm sure things will work out as time goes on…I hope."

On the other side of the room, Yang wouldn't keep her eyes off Weiss long enough to focus on the poster she and Pyrrha were working on. She was starting to be suspicious of Weiss ever since she and Coco found them in the closet. Back then, In a brief second, she noticed Ruby and Weiss were only inches apart before Weiss backed away from Ruby. Yang wasn't sure what was going on but she had a feeling Weiss was up to something.

"They're getting along rather nicely, wouldn't you agree?"

Yang snapped her head towards Pyrrha as she was surprised to hear her voice, she honestly forgot that the red head was even there. "What?"

"Weiss and Ruby, I'm kind of surprised Ruby isn't shying away from Weiss. Especially after she used to bully her… Weiss isn't the same as she was back then, Yang, so please give her a chance."

Yang scoffed as she tried to focus on drawing. "Don't take this the wrong way, Pyrrha, but I don't care how much she changed. Weiss can donate her entire family fortune to curing cancer and I'd still never forgive her."

"I'm not telling you to forgive her. I'm asking you to simply give her the chance to prove that she felt guilty about what she did and has become a better person ever since."

Yang didn't bother to respond to that. People don't just change, Yang knew this from experience. Her own mother hasn't changed in decades as she was still a foul mouthed, uncaring woman who doesn't care about anyone but herself. And now Yang had the misery of living with the troublesome woman. However, Yang only had one purpose in her life right now and that was keeping her baby sister safe.

* * *

After their two hours of making posters and banners, the students finally got to go home. Once Weiss was home, she began texting Ruby about their plans for the weekend. The Fall Parade started in the morning and Ruby planned to leave before Yang and Raven woke up. Thankfully, Yang and Raven both liked sleeping in on weekends. Weiss was currently trying to convince Ruby to go shopping this weekend while the Parade went on.

[Weiss: Come on Ruby, you said it yourself that you had to get rid of a lot of your clothes anyways. And besides, I've always wanted to take you shopping.]

[Ruby: Fine. But I'm not trying on any dresses, especially any sleeveless sundresses.]

Weiss furrowed her brows. She remembered Ruby enjoying wearing her cute sundresses whenever she had the chance back when they were kids. Maybe her taste in fashion changed? It didn't seem like it, though. Ruby still liked wearing shorts and hoodies just as she always has. Although, the silk pantyhose underneath the shorts is a nice addition, in Weiss' humble opinion.

[Weiss: Don't worry, I have something better in mind than dresses.]

[Ruby: Great! Oh, and I have some good news! My uniform arrived when I came back home today. God it brings back so many memories from grade school.]

Weiss blushed as she began to imagine Ruby in the school uniform, but all she could muster was an 8 year old Ruby with her old long flowing hair in their old Vytal Academy's elementary school uniform. Weiss suddenly felt a little daring as she typed in her reply.

[Weiss: I can't wait to see you in it.]

Weiss hoped it wasn't an obvious flirt, she just wanted to test the waters so to speak. But as seconds turned to minutes before getting a reply, Weiss began to worry. Was it too obvious? Did she scare Ruby off or something? After what felt like twenty minutes pass, Weiss was about to start freaking out before she heard her phone go off and she rush to read the reply.

[Ruby: Sorry for taking so long to reply, Yang wouldn't stop tickling me to get to my phone. Anyways, I think the uniform might be a little too small. I haven't tried it on yet but I swear the skirt looks a little shorter than I expected it to be.]

Reading about the skirt length was the last straw for Weiss as her imagination went wild with images of Ruby wearing a short skirt with her pantyhose underneath. Weiss imagined Ruby in various poses, showing off her toned yet soft looking thighs. Eventually Weiss imagined Ruby climbing up the ladder earlier, wearing the school uniform and giving Weiss a perfect view up her skirt. Before she knew it, Weiss had her hand between her legs and under her own skirt.

Before Weiss could act upon her imagination, she was interrupted by another text from Ruby, causing her to feel both annoyed and happy that her crush was texting her still.

[Ruby: I'm gonna go ahead and study before going to bed. Good night Weiss.]

Weiss quickly replied, telling Ruby 'good night' herself and decided to take a cold shower before going to study as well. To say Weiss didn't get much studying done that night would be quite the understatement as she struggled to stay focused. Images of Ruby just kept popping up in her mind, some of which had Ruby in various states of undress and poses while looking rather cute with an embarrassed expression written all over her face. Eventually, Weiss gave up on studying and decided to simply just go to bed as she chastised herself. Her perverted thoughts towards Ruby have only been getting worse since she came back yesterday. Hell, Weiss barely did any studying yesterday either as she was too busy acting on her urges, pleasuring herself like a desperate and lonely housewife until she was too tired to study at all and fell asleep.

However, Weiss decided to fight against those urges tonight and simply go to bed. But sadly, a single question popped into her head right as she was about to fall asleep.

_'___Does Ruby ever think about me whenever she pleasures herself?'__

Needless to say, Weiss wasn't going to get a good night's sleep tonight.


	3. Dodging Pain and Catching Scars

_Weiss crouched behind a tree, surrounded by bushes tall enough to hide her tiny, 8 year old body behind. She still hasn't stopped crying since she ran away from her father and sister. They were arguing and Weiss hated seeing her family argue. She didn't quite understand what they were arguing about but it seemed to involve one of her sister's teachers. Weiss never screamed or yelled when she cried. Doing that only made things worse for her. So weiss cried silently, crouching in her hiding place she found months prior. Surrounded by thick bushes and several trees, it made an ideal place for her to be by herself whenever she had the chance to visit the park._

_She didn't get to be alone for very long though as a red rubber ball bounced over the bushes and landed directly in front of her and startling her. Not long after, the bushes rustled as someone tried to move past them. Weiss froze in place, her heart beating against her ribcage as time seemed to slow down. Out of the bushes came a small girl wearing a t-shirt as red as the ball that separated the two girls and her shorts looked worn with a hole in one of its sleeves. Her hair was long and a very dark shade of red, like the fake blood that's sold in October. The girl stopped in her tracks upon seeing Weiss. For a while they just stood there staring at each other, unsure what to do._

_"Umm...Hi." The girl shyly waved at Weiss, she had a nervous yet friendly smile._

_Weiss reluctantly waved back, her heart still racing. She had thought her hiding place would never be found. But alas, someone found it and Weiss was scared that her refuge would be revealed._

_"W-Who are you?" Weiss asked, her voice was meek as she tried to wipe her tears away._

_The girl's smile grew and her eyes seemed to sparkle after hearing the question. She stuck out her hand to help Weiss up from her sitting position. "I'm Ruby."_

* * *

It was a cold morning in Vytal as a cold front had come down from the north, bringing frigid weather earlier than expected.

Weiss pulled up her scarff, shielding her face from the stinging cold air. She felt her breath warm the fabric as it covered her mouth. Despite all the nicknames she got involving snow and ice, Weiss actually hated the cold. It didn't help that she was rather slim and had little body fat.

On the way to school Wednesday morning, Weiss wanted to make one little pit stop at a certain public park. Amity Park, the same park she met a certain happy and giddy girl that warmed her heart. Weiss had purposely avoided the park for years, yet here she was. She wasn't sure why she was here but she couldn't help feeling a little nostalgic.

Amity Park hasn't really changed much over the years, surprising Weiss a little. She would have figured a tree would have have been removed or the playground be replaced by a new one, but it was the same one as 8 years ago. As Weiss strolled through the park, she spotted her old hiding place behind a group of bushes and trees. It was a place of many good memories, as well as bad ones. Eventually, Weiss came upon the playground. It was quite worn and rusted, clearly neglected over the years.

Weiss let out a heavy sigh as she ran her fingers along the aluminum frame of the playground. The green paint was chipping away to reveal the cold and silver industrial metal underneath, like scars that revealed its true self underneath its childish colors.

After aimlessly wandering, Weiss found the red tube Ruby always liked to crawl into, especially when they played hide and seek or tag. She climbed the steps up the playground, being extra careful not to trip on the thin layer of frost that had covered the playground. Sadly, it didn't seem that much bigger since she barely grew the last time she came here, reminding Weiss of her agonizingly small stature.

Once the red tube was before her, a small smile tugged at her cheeks as a childish idea struck her. Weiss looked around only to find the park truly empty. After a couple seconds of hesitation, she climbed into the tube, quietly giggling to herself as she submerged herself in nostalgia. She was honestly surprised she could still fit inside. Although, it was a bit of a tight fit and her knees were pressed firmly against her chest, with her uniform's skirt riding up to her hip bones to reveal her blue leggings. Okay, maybe she did grow a little bit since last time.

She stayed in her little red tube for a while, thinking about the past and especially about Ruby. Weiss had honestly been doing that a lot lately over that past week. Ruby hasn't really changed that much over the years, just like the playground Weiss was currently in. Well, at least Ruby wasn't rusted and scarred like the playground, but she was still happy and energetic which was something Weiss had been sorely missing in her life.

As Weiss continued to think about the past, she suddenly began thinking of the days just before Ruby moved. Those days were the worst couple of months for Weiss and Ruby.

"Nice necklace you have there. But I dont think roses suit you."

Weiss shut her eyes tight, begging for the memories to go away.

"Come on, it'll be funny. She'll never see it coming."

Weiss clutched at her chest, completely void of the necklace Ruby gave her. The same one she said she was going to cherish forever. Weiss fought off the urge to cry and kept her eyes closed tight.

"Oh please, Weiss. Do you really think you can be friends with someone like her? She's a nobody. People like her are beneath us."

"Weiss? What are you doing in there?"

Weiss' eyes shot open as she whipped her head toward the tube's entrance. Squatting down with her hands on her knees was Ruby with her head tilted to the side, the tell tale sign she was obviously confused.

"I ,um, I honestly don't know…" Weiss was a bit embarrassed being caught in the red tube, what the hell was she thinking? She's 17 years old and yet she's on a playground meant for kids half her age. Weiss tried to move to get out, but quickly found out that she could barely move her legs. A quiet giggle came from Ruby and Weiss tried her best not to glare at her.

Ruby gave Weiss a playful grin as she watched her struggle to free herself. "Do you need some help?"

Weiss sighed as she ended her struggling, just her luck to embarrass herself like this in front of Ruby. "Maybe…"

Ruby rolled her eyes as she reached into the tube and grabbed Weiss' arm, pulling as hard as she could while giggling.

"I'm surprised you can still fit in there."

"Oh just shut up and pull me out already."

Ruby groaned as she pulled on Weiss, barely making any leeway at first. After a few more tries, Weiss finally popped free with Ruby landing on her butt and Weiss landing on top of Ruby, halfway out of the tube but free nonetheless. Ruby began laughing, clearly enjoying their own antics while Weiss simple laid there with her head on top of Ruby's chest as she laughs.

Weiss was beyond embarrassed, first she got caught and stuck in such a position in front of Ruby, only to be followed by getting into their current state. As Ruby laughed, her chest tended to bounce along with Weiss' head. To make matters worse, Weiss couldn't bring herself to get off of her. Ruby was just too warm and her jacket was so soft as it was made of cotton. If it wasn't for the coffee Weiss had this morning and the loud laughter from Ruby, she could probably fall asleep like this.

Eventually though, Ruby stopped laughing and Weiss took that as her que to get off. As Weiss straightened out her clothes, Ruby got up from the cold playground floor herself and wiped off the rear of her skirt. "S-So... what are you doing here anyways?"

Weiss shrugged. "Nostalgia, you?"

Ruby tugged at her right sleeve as she let out a weak chuckle. "S-Same... I can't believe everything is exactly how it was the last time I was here..."

Ruby looked around the park with a small but strangely forced smile. Weiss was about to call her out on it, but the sound of a familiar voice calling out in the distance cut her off.

"Ruby?! Come on, were gonna be late to school!"

Ruby nearly jumped at the sound of her sister's voice before placing her hands on Weiss' shoulders. "Yang's coming, you need to hide."

"Where? There's nowhere for me to hide in." Weiss whispered.

Ruby turned her head towards the red tube,prompting Weiss to do the same.

"No...no, I'm not going back in there after getting stuck."

"Just lay down on your belly and then crawl out when I'm gone."

Weiss sighed, she didn't really have a choice. She reluctantly got on her hands and knees and started to crawl into the tube, laying flat on her belly. She placed a hand over her mouth to muffle the sound of her breathing, just in case Yang might be close enough to hear.

"Ruby, why did you sneak off like that?" Yang's voice came from a little bellow Weiss, most likely she stayed on the ground and didn't bother to join Ruby on the playground.

"I-I just thought I'd take the scenic route, and besides, I remembered that it's faster if we cut through the park."

Yang sighed. "Look, I'm sorry I was ranting about Raven, okay? Just please don't run off like that again ...I don't want to lose you too…"

Ruby was silent for a moment before muttering "geez, you make it sound like dad died too…"

"Yeah well...he's not here and he isn't going to be for a whil, and since Raven isnt gonna do her job and take care of us, I have to fill in the role."

"Yang, I'm not a little kid, I can take care of myself perfectly fine…"

Yang chuckled. "Says the girl who forgot to wear a bra and shirt underneath her hoodie yesterday."

Ruby sputtered "W-Well, m-maybe I wouldn't have forgotten if my alarm went off like it was supposed to and you weren't arguing with Raven first thing in the morning." Weiss could practically hear the angry glare Ruby was giving her sister. "How about you go and try getting ready with less than ten minutes before leaving for school."

Yang chuckled. "Okay, I'm sorry about the Raven thing, but I ain't taking the blame for your clumsiness, Rubes. Besides, it's not my fault you like to sleep nude."

Weiss blushed upon hearing that as an image of Ruby sleeping naked with nothing but the silk sheets from Weiss' bed covering her modesty. This was starting to get awkward for Weiss as she listened to the sisters. She really wanted to just leave already. After a few more seconds, the sisters seemed to finally begin to leave.

"Come on, Rubes. I promise not to rant about Raven for the west of the walk, Okay? So please don't run off again."

"...Fine."

Once Weiss figured the sisters were out of sight, she crawled out of the tube and dusted herself off. "Well, that could have gone better…and I guess Yang can be nice. Just not to me."

* * *

Homeroom was boring as usual and went by faster than Weiss would have liked, forcing her to tear her eyes away from Ruby so she could head to her next class. First and second period went by as expected, with Weiss taking as many notes as she could. But third period was probably the highlight of the day so far. It was also P.E. and Weiss hated P.E. because of one reason.

"Coco! Stop it!" Pyrrrha whined in the background.

"No way! You totally got bigger!"

Weiss tried her best to ignore her friends as she changed her clothes, but listening to their antics while knowing they were half naked was beyond agonizing. She still hasn't told them the fact that she was gay, she was afraid that it would make things awkward between them. Especially in situations like this where she was surrounded by other girls who were walking around half naked.

"I don't understand how that blonde boy can be so oblivious when you have these amazing tits to taunt him with!"

Weiss' ears and cheeks were scorching red at this point, she was jealous of Pyrrha but would never admit it, the red head was everything Weiss wasn't, tall and busty. Weiss shook her head and began unbuttoning her dress shirt, sliding it off to reveal her naked torso. No point in wearing a bra if there's nothing there to support. However, what was also missing from her chest was the feeling of cold metal from the necklace Ruby gave her years ago. In fact, she hasn't seen it in years. Weiss let out a sigh as she stuffed her shirt into her locker beside her blazer and backpack. She was such a stupid child back then. If only she wasn't so scared as a kid. Just as she was bending over to slide off her skirt, she heard Coco whistle.

"Damn Weiss, bend over any farther and I'd think you're trying to moon me with that cute little ass of yours."

Weiss shot straight up as her skirt fell to her ankles, her face glowing red and her arms locked to the side. Coco's bellowing laughter echoed in the locker room, causing some of their classmates to stare at them. God did Weiss hate P.E.

Coco slapped her hand on Weiss naked back. Unknowingly making Weiss even more embarrassed. "Don't be so worked up, Weiss. I was only teasing to loosen you up. You know it's just us girls, right?"

_**' **That's exactly the problem… **' **_ Weiss kept her eyes forward towards her locker, afraid to reveal her red face. "yeah, but you know how self-conscious I get…"

"Just relax, nobody here cares about your size." Coco stepped over to Weiss' side and leaned on the row of lockers, perfectly able to see Weiss' pathetically flat chest. Weiss was glad that Coco never teased her about her chest, knowing full well how sensitive a topic it was for her. Now that Coco was within view, Weiss was trying her damn hardest not to steal a peek at her friend's chest. The bra Coco wore didn't really cover that much skin and she had her arms crossed under her modest breasts, unintentionally give them a bit of a lift that Weiss failed to ignore in the corner of her vision.

However, Coco was suddenly solemn, sharply contrasting her usual confident and boisterous personality. "Anyway, I got some bad news for ya. Apparently Mrs. Streichholz quit yesterday."

Weiss was a bit taken aback by the news, she really liked Mrs. Streichholz. They had a lot in common as both their families came from a German background. Plus, she was also probably the friendliest teacher in the school. "Why did she quit?"

Coco shrugged. "Can't say, it was really sudden. But her replacement is...well, a bit questionable to say the least."

"I've been wondering about that myself, I heard he was fired from this very school years ago." Pyrrha joined in after finally being able to put on her sports bra without Coco groping her. "I heard he taught history and P.E. for grades nine through twelve."

Coco pushed herself off the lockers and went back to her own to put on her P.E. uniform. A simple white t-shirt and running shorts. "Yeah, I heard he drinks a lot too."

* * *

Weiss couldn't believe her eyes. The new teacher wasn't someone she expected to see. After exiting the locker rooms, the rest of Weiss' class was just as shocked as she was. How could someone as scruffy looking as this man possibly be teacher material? To make matters worse, everyone knew the man as the town's biggest drunk, Qrow Branwen of the ever so small yet fiercely problematic Branwen family. The same family that the Schnees have hated for generations. The same family that Ruby was unfortunately a part of.

"First things first, nobody's going to be calling me 'Mr. Branwen', got it?" everyone, including Weiss, nodded. "Good, cause that's my only rule. Now onto the event Mrs. Streichholz had organized for today before she left. Apperently, we're going to be having a dodgeball match with another class and-...Well, speak of the devil."

A cocky smirk tugged at his lips just as the supposed enemy class walked into the gymnasium. Weiss' jaw hit the floor when she turned around to face them. Leading her class like a troop of soldiers was Winter of all people.

_'Oh this isn't going to end well...' _Weiss dragged her hand down her face, already fearing what's to come. Qrow and Winter were one of the many driving forces of the little family feud between their families.

Winter did her best not to show it, but Weiss could tell that her sister was furious. Winter had that stern look that only occurred when she was trying to hide her anger, but honestly, Weiss thought it only made it more obvious and looking back at Qrow, he too could tell how mad Winter was.

"I cannot believe they chose you of all people to take Mrs. Streichholz position." Winter glared at Qrow as if she hoped he would spontaneously combust on the spot.

"Hey, I didn't really want to go back to teaching either, but no one else in town had the qualifications." his cocky smirk turned to a smug smile and his voice was as casual as ever, making Winter seeth in rage.

As Winter and Qrow began bantering between each other, Weiss looked among her older sister's class to look for her friend, Penny. When Weiss finally spotted her behind a group of her classmates, Penny was chatting away and laughing with someone whom Weiss couldn't see behind some of the students.

"Okay everyone, each class will line up on each side of the court." Winter commanded, the students of both classes did not hesitate to do as they were told as they lined up parallel to each other. The students of Weiss' class faced their enemy for the hour, separated by about 15 feet of space and a row of the iconic red, rubber balls that will be the weapons they'll be using to annihilate each other with.

However, When Weiss finally looked up to face the enemy student who stood opposite of her, she was shocked to see Ruby chatting away with Penny next to her and didn't even notice Weiss for a couple of seconds. But when Ruby finally noticed her, she was just as shocked. Ruby was wearing the same t-shirt and running shorts as Weiss but also wore the optional tracksuit jacket zipped up. The jacket's sleeves went a little past her wrists as it appeared to be a size too big for her. But her arms weren't what Weiss' eyes were drawn towards as they were glued to Ruby's bare legs. Obviously, Ruby wasn't wearing her usual pantyhose, giving Weiss the blessed chance to see how well toned Ruby's legs really were. Thank god Weiss was able to keep herself from drooling at the sight of Ruby's thighs. A sudden shift of Ruby's body caused Weiss to look up and away from Ruby's legs, only to see Ruby whispering to Penny but didn't take her eyes off Weiss. Penny also noticed Weiss but had her full attention towards her conversation with Ruby. Weiss was beyond confused at what she was seeing.

_**'**Since when were Ruby and Penny friends? I thought Ruby said she was weird? Oh right... Ruby is weird too.**'**_ Weiss shook her head in disbelief, she should have expected this when Ruby mentioned that she and Penny were lab partners yesterday.

"Hey Weiss, looks like Penny made a new friend." Pyrrha's voice brought Weiss out of her thoughts.

"I noticed."

Coco gently jabbed Weiss' arm with her elbow to get her attention. "It's not a problem that it's Ruby, right? Wouldn't that be awkward? You know, considering your families and the fact that you bullied her back in grade school."

Weiss sighed, oh how she hated that little part of her history with Ruby. Yes, she bullied her but not willingly, she hated doing all those horrible things to Ruby. At least Ruby understood Weiss' situation at the time and took the bullying like a champ. Well, except for the last thing she did...

'I still need to apologize for that…'

Weiss was brought out of her thoughts by a loud whistle and before she knew it, everyone darted for the dodgeballs like hungry animals. Weiss failed to get the ball in front of her as Ruby took it right as Weiss got to it and for a split second, Weiss saw a mischievous smirk across Ruby's face. It was at this moment Weiss knew that she was doomed. Ruby had always been competitive when it came to the games she played, even childish ones.

Without a second to spare, Weiss jumped back and tried to get some distance from Ruby as the opposing classes began pelting each other with the glorious red balls of pain. To be honest, Weiss was confident in her dodging skills as fencing had honed her focus and taught her how to be quick on her feet. But against Ruby? She wasn't too sure of herself. If Ruby's well toned legs were anything to go by, she was sure to be just as fit and athletic in her upper body as well. As if to prove Weiss' inner thoughts right, Ruby winded up her throwing arm as she stared at Weiss with a face that told her that Ruby was clearly going to enjoy this one hour of painful fun. Ruby threw the ball with all her strength, sending it flying through the air and straight for Weiss' face.

Weiss let out a squeak as she ducked, causing Ruby to giggle loud enough to be heard by Weiss. "Hey! Watch where you aim that thing!" Weiss yelled, but then she noticed a second ball flying towards her, dodging it at the last possible second. Weiss looked over towards the person who threw the second ball. It was Penny, who shared a high five with Ruby.

"Looks like you got a target on your back, Weiss." Coco chucked a ball towards Ruby who dodged with amazing ease without even so much as looking at Coco. "Damn, she's good."

Weiss had to agree as she watched Ruby dodge and catch balls like a dodgeball champ. Ruby was clearly more athletic than Weiss had thought, she was even giving Pyrrha a run for her money, and Pyrrha was the most athletic girl Weiss knew.

"Pyrrha, focus on Ruby! Me and Coco will cover you!" Weiss wasn't gonna let Ruby pelt her into oblivion without fighting back. Ruby was certainly competitive, but Weiss was twice as competitive. Schnees don't take losing lightly, after all.

Just as Weiss gave her commands to her friends, another ball nearly blind sided her, inches away from her head as it flew by. She didn't have to look around to find out who threw it as she heard Ruby whine.

"Jaune, how could you miss her!? She wasn't even moving!" Weiss watched Ruby shake the six foot and 3 inch tall blonde by the shoulders, a miraculous achievement considering the top of Ruby's head just barely reached his collar bones.

Then they both just started laughing together, as if all the chaos around them didn't matter. Now was Pyrrha's chance to take out Ruby, why wasn't she taking the shot? Weiss looked over to Pyrrha and Coco who were busy trying to dodge a torrent of dodgeballs from Penny, along with another ginger and a rather tall asian boy. Weiss was all too familiar with who the duo were, how could anyone in Vytal not know Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren? At their feet were a hoarded pile of dodgeballs that Weiss guessed they had caught, sending most of Weiss' team to the benches while collecting all the ammo they needed.

Weiss decided to take matters into her own hands. It had only been seconds before finding a ball on the ground, picking it up as she closed the distance between her and Ruby. Right when she got to the dividing line, Weiss winded up her arm as far as she could and threw it with as much strength as she could muster.

Just as the ball left her hand, Weiss saw Ruby's hysterical smile turn to horror as she watched the ball fly towards her. Ruby didn't have time to react as the ball slammed right into her forehead, causing her to fall right on her back.

Weiss immediately regretted it, did she throw it too hard? Was Ruby okay? Was Ruby mad at her? Her worries were lessened when Ruby finally got up, rubbing her forehead where a visible red mark was left behind. She was helped up by Jaune as she smiled and laughed it off before heading over to the benches with the other students.

Weiss was so distracted by Ruby that she didn't see a ball coming straight at her, hitting her right in the gut, causing her to fall to her knees.

"Ha! I took down the Ice Queen!"Nora shouted with her fists in the air.

Weiss walked over to the bench, clutching her stomach as she muttered to herself about being called 'Ice Queen'. Weiss took a seat beside Ruby but kept a 12 inch gap between them. They were both a good distance from everyone else who sat on the bench, just far enough away to talk privately.

"Nora got you good, huh?" Ruby said, breaking any silence before it could even fill the void between them. Her forehead was a lot redder than Weiss had thought.

Weiss frowned at the sight. "yeah, she did. Sorry about your head by the way, I honestly didn't think I threw the ball that hard."

"Its fine, I've honestly been through worse. Like the time I got into a fight with some bully back in middle school. Got a bloody nose and fat lip after that little fight. Oh, and that other fight with another bully left me with bruised knuckles and a black eye, bastard got a lucky punch in when a teacher tried to break it up."

Weiss' eyes widened at the idea of Ruby getting into fights. She honestly couldn't see it, Ruby never really seemed like the type, at least not when they were kids. "Why in the world were you in so many fights?"

"I...um, I was protecting a friend of mine, she got bullied a lot because she was gay... Sadly, beating the crap out of her bullies never seemed to deter them..."

"Well, I'm glad she had a good friend by her side. Although, I think you went a little too far, you really shouldn't be so quick to pick a fight, Ruby."

"I know, mo-...m-mom gave me a lecture every time I came home from school with bruises while Yang would often congratulate me when mom and dad weren't around." Ruby wore a sad smile as she fiddled with her fingers, Weiss honestly felt the smile was forced though.

"I'm sure she was proud of you anyways for standing up for your friend, Ruby. I know I am."

"I know…She'd end up baking cookies after lecturing me." Ruby surprisingly giggled at the memory.

**' **Well, at least she can still laugh when she remembers her mother…" Weiss had honestly been a little worried that bringing up Ruby's mother might cause her to have another break down like yesterday. It was reassuring to know that Ruby could look back at the memories with at least some happiness.

The two girls sat together in silence while Ruby watched the dodgeball match, still fidgeting with her hands. Weiss kept herself busy watching Ruby instead. She ignored Ruby's fidgeting for the most part, taking it as a sign that Ruby might be bored. After a while, Weiss began to notice that there was sweat running down Ruby's face as it glistened on her skin. Wasn't Ruby hot wearing that tracksuit jacket? It looked a tad too big too as it was a bit baggy and fell down past her waist. Though, in a way, Weiss kind of liked how Ruby looked in the oversized jacket, it would look kind of cute if Ruby didn't look so uncomfortable.

"You look really hot in that jacket." Weiss stated rather calmly before realizing how poorly she worded it. _**' **Crap, please don't think I'm flirting… **'**_

Luckily, Ruby didn't seem to notice Weiss' unintentional flirting as she suddenly tugged her right sleeve, bringing it even further down to cover her hand. "Oh, um...n-not really, I feel fine."

Weiss quirks a brow, watching Ruby. She was obviously lying, she was covered in sweat for crying out loud. How could she be fine? "Yeah, but your sweating like a pig. You should really take your jacket off."

Ruby frantically waved her hands in front of herself, causing her sleeves to roll down to her wrist. "No no, I'm fine, really. I'm just a little out of shape since I haven't been working out like I used to and-"

Weiss stopped listening as her eyes were suddenly drawn to Ruby's waving hands as she rambled, a small pink scar just barely peeking out from under Ruby's right sleeve had caught Weiss' full attention.

"What's that on your wrist?"

Ruby nearly froze, ending her rambling as she quickly brought her hands down and tugged on her sleeve to cover the suspected pink mark. "N-nothing!"

Weiss jolted back a bit, A bit surprised by Ruby's sudden outburst. She looked a bit frantic and nervous all of a sudden, as if Weiss had just caught her doing something she knows is wrong, like a child with it's hand stuck in a cookie jar.

"Um, I mean...i-it's nothing, a stray cat clawed me yesterday morning before school…"

Weisa simply nodded. Sadly, she didn't believe Ruby as she was always a terrible liar. Plus, it didn't help that the cut looked nothing like a scratch from a cat as it was too deep and wide. However, Weiss didn't want to press any further if Ruby was so hellbent on hiding it. Instead, she decided to play along. "Right… Did you atleast have the nurse look at it? Stray cats can carry a lot of diseases you know."

"Y-Yeah, I did…" Ruby seemed to relax a bit and went back to watching the match. But Weiss wasn't gonna let her off the hook so easily, there was still the sweating problem to deal with.

"Still, you should at least unzip your jacket." Weiss stated casually as she too continued to watch the match. It was almost over now with a one on one duel between Pyrrha and Nora.

Ruby sighed in defeat and unzipped her jacket to reveal her white shirt that was nearly covered in sweat. not once did Ruby take her eyes off Nora and Pyrrha's seemingly endless showdown. They were really going at each other, neither being able to catch a ball or hit their target. The other students sitting on the sidelines were cheering both girls on.

"Who do you think is gonna win?"

Weiss and Ruby nearly jumped out of their seats by the sound of Coco's voice. Apparently, she was sitting behind Weiss and Ruby the entire time. ignoring the glare she was receiving from Weiss, Coco hopped down to where Ruby and Weiss were sitting and sat in the gap between them.

"So Ruby, I couldn't help but notice that you're friends with Penny, and it looks like you and Weiss are getting along surprisingly well too."

Ruby, still surprised by Coco's sudden appearance, only managed to let out an "umm" before darting her eyes toward Weiss, silently asking for help. Only problem was that Weiss had no idea what to do either and frantically shook her head, hoping that Ruby doesn't blow it.

"Um, Yeah...Penny is pretty cool...a-and Weiss was only making sure I was okay."

Coco slowly nodded as she hummed in response. Weiss knew what Coco was up to and she didn't like it one bit. Coco leaned in towards Ruby, getting into her personal space as a playful smirk tugged at her lips. Two seconds passed in silence before Coco finally spoke.

"You're gonna join us for lunch today."

Ruby blinked, surprised by the sudden proposal, or rather the command. "I-I am?"

Coco leaned back and finally gave Ruby some space. "Yeah, I'm sure you'll get along great with Pyrrha too."

Weiss couldn't believe what was happening. Her and Ruby's relationship was at risk just like that? No, she had to do something but what? Weiss was drawing blanks as she frantically tried to come up with a plan.

"I'm sorry but I can't" Ruby's voice snapped Weiss out of her frantic state. "I had plans to eat with my friends, I haven't really gotten to chat too much with them since coming back to Vytal."

Coco nodded and placed her hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Hey, no need to apologize. It was just an invitation. Feel free to join us some time though, Penny really seems to enjoy your presence."

Weiss sighed in relief, that was way too close for comfort. Suddenly, a whistle blew and the three girls attentions were directed toward Winter and Qrow. Winter was fuming as Qrow looked rather satisfied.

'Qrow's class wins…" Winter said through gritted teeth.

Weiss looked back over at Pyrrha and Nora. Nora was on her butt, rubbing her forehead where a red welt was forming. Weiss took a quick note to not get hit by anything thrown by Pyrrha.

Qrow took a step forward and began giving orders. "Alright, everyone get ready for round two, we still got enough time to pulverize each other before lunch."

* * *

For the rest of her classes, Weiss was so sore. The second round of dodgeball was a bloodbath as Winter's class wiped the floor with Qrow's. Ruby even got hit a few times and Weiss had it worse. She wasn't sure how she survived so many dodgeballs to the gut and head. Ruby and Nora needed to learn to hold their punches. On the bright side, the last class Weiss had on her schedule, Health Class, is arguably the easiest. However, it was also easily the most boring class for Weiss as most of it consisted of things that she deemed as just common sense. Like healthy foods, anti-drug campaigns, sexual education, and so on. Today however, it seemed her teacher brought in a surprise guest to talk about the topic of the day. The school counselor herself, Miss Peach. The classroom was dark as Miss Peach explained to the class what depression is by flipping through slides that were projected onto the whiteboard. Weiss already knew the information and had drowned out most of what the counselor was saying.

"So, now that you all know what depression is, we'll move on to something a little more...dramatic." Miss Peach flipped to the next slide.

What Weiss saw being projected on the whiteboard finally got her full attention. A well drawn yet cartoonish looking boy with a knife held up to his wrist, drawing blood. Written above were the words "Self-Harm" in bold font and to the left of the drawing was a quick definition of the term above.

"Who here has heard of 'Self-Harm'?" Several students raised their hands. Weiss failed to raise hers as she was too busy looking at the drawing of the boy while images of Ruby's scar from earlier today filled her head. She had heard of self harm before when she had first gone to Miss Peach for their private counseling session but honestly forgotten about it since it didn't apply to her.

"It's important to know that Self-Harm isn't caused by depression, though two are often connected, but rather it has a multitude of causes." With her remote, Miss Peach flipped to the next slide. "Self-Harm is usually a coping mechanism of sorts. The pain may be used to distract oneself from traumatic memories or overwhelming emotions. Another example is when people may feel extreme amounts of stress or feel like they have no control and so-...Yes, Weiss?"

Weiss didn't even know why she raised her hand so eagerly. Maybe it was the constant image of Ruby cutting herself with blood dripping from her wrist that began to plague her mind, making her fear the worst. Weiss slowly lowered her hand to give herself more time to find the right words. Weiss was slow to start, unsure if she should even ask her question. "Let's say if you saw a scar on your friend's wrist and they tried to hide it from you and claim it was just a scratch from a cat or something...What should you do?"

Miss Peach was silent for a moment as she stared at Weiss, tapping a finger against her chin. "Well, if you think someone is harming themselves, you should drag them to the nurse or myself, even if they're kicking and screaming. They may get mad at you for doing so but they'll eventually thank you for it...hopefully."

"I see…" Was all Weiss could say, she thought hard on what Miss Peach said. She really didn't have any proof that her fears are even warranted, it could have just been an old scar that Ruby's embarrassed about for some reason, right? Weiss didn't need to worry, at least not yet. Besides, there's no way the giddy, dorky, and cute Ruby Rose would do such horrible things to herself.

_'She's just too happy...right?'_

* * *

At the end of the class, school was basically over. Now all Weiss had to do was go back to Homeroom and continue to paint like a toddler and pretend to enjoy it. Well at least she got to spend time with Ruby, so it wasn't all bad. And on the plus side, Yang cant do anything about it since it was out of anyone's control. Yang just had to sit there and let it happen.

To be honest though, Weiss didn't hate or even dislike Yang. She understood very well the length an older sister would go to protect their younger siblings. Winter was no exception, even if she did act distant from everyone. When weiss finally returned to Homeroom, she was greeted by a horrible sound. An annoyed Blake Belladonna arguing with a certain blonde oaf.

"Sun, I have student council duties to take care of, I can't just run off and go to your silly beach concert." Blake didn't even look up at her friend as she read whatever was on her clipboard.

Weiss pretended to ignore the argument and took her seat behind Ruby, who seemed to be just as uncomfortable as the rest of the class listening to Blake and Sun's antics.

"Oh c'mon, these guys can totally get the job done without you. Besides, when was the last time you actually had fun!?" despite Blake's obvious irritation, Sun simply smiled and beamed like his namesake.

As much as Weiss hated to admit it, she agreed with Sun, the class really didn't need Blake watching over them.

"Sun, I said no! Now leave, I have a business to take care of and you'll just get in the way."

Sun nearly flinched at the outburst and silent left the classroom. Blake let out a heavy sigh and quickly got to work. After taking attendance, she asked Yang and Pyrrha to get the art supplies since Weiss and Ruby took too long last time. While the two strongest girls in class got the supplies, Blake decided now was the best time to ask for ideas for what their class was going to do at the festival.

"We could host a fashion runway." Coco stated.

"What about a dipping tank, you know, the ones where someone sits over ice cold water and falls in when a ball hits the target." A boy up front chimed in.

Blake shook her head. "As fun as this might be, the first doesnt fit the theme of the festival and the second would cause the dunkee to get the flu. Seriously, does no one have any good Fall or Halloween themed ideas? Preferably something that wouldn't take a month to set up?"

"I-I have an idea…" of all the people Weiss would have expected to raise their hands, Ruby was the last. No, scratch that. Ruby wasn't even on the list to begin with.

"Alright, Ruby. Let's hear it." Blake seemed relieved that at least one person had an idea as she gave Ruby a smile.

All Weiss could see was the back of Ruby's head, but she could tell that the younger girl was a little nervous as she slouched a little over her desk. "Well...h-how about a costume themed cafe or diner? It could be right here in the classroom and the students could dress up and serve the customers."

The whole class seemed to come alive as the students began chatting amongst themselves about the idea. Even Blake seemed to be pleased with it.

"I think that can work, Ruby. All we need now is someone who can cook." Blake brought her pencil to her lips as she began to think

Luckily, Weiss knew exactly who can be the chef. "Klein can be the chef. He works for my family and has cooked many different varieties of dishes."

Blake thought about it for a moment, or at least pretended to. "I guess he could…"

As the class finally agreed to the idea, Yang and Pyrrha returned with the supplies and the class got to work on their banners and posters. Weiss and Ruby were nearly done with theirs, with only half of it to go. Ruby's side had various characters depicting the tale of Little Red Riding Hood, complete with the woodsman cutting open the big bad wolf in crimson gory fashion and saving Little Red and her grandma from the wolf's stomach.

"Ruby, I think that's a little too gory…" Weiss hesitantly asked as she watched Ruby do the finishing touches.

"Why? That's how the original story goes and besides, this is nothing compared to some of the movies my uncle took me and Yang to around Halloween."

"If you say so…by the way, that idea of yours, what are you going to dress up as?"

"I don't know, I haven't really thought about it yet. I just thought it would be a fun thing to do together." Ruby looked up at Weiss with a smile. "What about you? What are you going to dress up as?"

"Hmm, I was thinking vampire." Weiss stated it like it was the obvious choice. She didn't know why but it just felt right to her, it was just too fitting for her and her family. Weiss finally finished the pumpkin she was painting, she put a lot of effort into it and felt proud with the result.

However, a snort and giggle from Ruby seemed to disagree. "Weiss, what the heck is that?"

"What? It's obviously a pumpkin with a face carved out."

Ruby couldn't hold it in anymore as she began laughing her butt off while pointing at Weiss' masterpiece. "But it looks like a big orange butt!"

"It does not!" it really did. Weiss was just too proud to see it.

Ruby was hugging her stomach while she rolled on the floor laughing. God she was such a child sometimes. "It totally does!"

"It does not! See!?" Weiss began pointing at her painting rather angrily. Though she was more hurt than anything. She worked hard on her giant pumpkin since they started yesterday.

"Oh hey, it does look like a big orange butt." Coco chimed in, towering over Weiss who was sitting with her legs tucked under her.

"How does it look like a butt?!" Weiss wasn't even going to bother questioning why Coco was over here and not with her partner.

While Ruby remained laughing her butt off like the overgrown child she is, Coco explained why Weiss' glorious painting looked like a butt, which caused Ruby ro laugh even more.

"Okay, I get it! I suck at drawing okay!" Weiss fumed as she crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks. She couldn't deny it anymore, the more she looked at it, the more her pumpkin did indeed look like an orange butt with a jack o'lantern face carved into it.

Coco simply chuckled as she went back to her own project with her partner. "Look on the bright side, Weiss. At least the kids will like it when they see it."

Weiss looked back at Ruby who was finally over her laughing fit, wiping a stray tear from her eye. Considering Ruby, Weiss had to agree with Coco as Ruby was the biggest "child" that Weiss knew.

"You're such a dolt." Weiss whispered with a smile.

"I know." Ruby whispered back with a toothy grin.

Weiss couldn't get enough of Ruby's smiles. They were just so warm and bright. How could Weiss even consider that Ruby was harming herself? Just look at the bloody dolt, she was the living embodiment of happiness right now.

At least, that's what Weiss decided to believe for now. She decided that just because there was a small scar on Ruby's wrist didn't mean anything. Maybe Ruby wasn't lying about the cat. Maybe it was from an accident while cooking. Weiss didn't know and because of that, she decided to leave it be unless more evidence said otherwise. Besides, Ruby didn't seem like the type of person who'd resort to such a horrible act.

Right?

* * *

This wasn't good, not good at all. Her sister was supposed to be here when Raven came to pick them up after school and yet she ran off with some blonde guy and his blue haired friend to the beach. Who the hell goes to hang out at the beach in October anyways?

"Hey, you getting in the truck or what?"

The sound of Raven's impatient voice pulled her out of her own thoughts and she silently got into the old and grey pickup truck, shutting the door behind her with a loud thunk. Raven looked at her for a moment, staring at her with stern and tired looking eyes. Her red irises practically doubled the intimidation factor.

"Where's Yang?" Raven looked even more impatient when she noticed that her daughter was nowhere to be seen.

She was silent for a moment, not sure if she should rat out her sister or not.

"Ruby, where is she?"

"A-At the beach...w-with some friends…"


	4. Diamond In The Rough

Thursday morning was just like the others for Weiss. Waking up to the sun bleeding light into her room through the window. making sure her uniform was pristine and perfectly ironed, tying her hair into her signature off-centered ponytail. It was the same as every morning for Weiss. The most minor of changes never stood out enough to change the results. Once she was ready, she grabbed her backpack and left her room and entered the pristine white hallway on the second floor of Schnee Manor, adorn with a deep blue carpet and the occasional desk holding a few small, flower filled vases and picture frames.

It took her a whole five minutes just to walk down the hall and to the stairs that lead to the first floor. After another three minutes, she finally made it to the rather spacious dining room. A long, wooden table placed perfectly in the center without a single scratch or spec of dust on its surface. Already seated were her younger brother and her mother, who had a very high chance of being drunk.

Her brother, Whitley, was writing something up in his notebook with one hand and a fork stabbing into eggs with the other. Her mother, Willow, meanwhile simply drank a glass of red wine that could easily be mistaken for blood if Weiss didn't know any better. Her mother was also reading something on her phone without a single hint of emotion on her face.

Weiss didn't bother to greet them as she knew she probably would only get a hummed response at best from her mother and a lazy or annoyed greeting from her brother as he deemed his homework more important. Weiss set her backpack next to her chair and took her seat across from her mother and not a moment sooner did Klein burst through the kitchen door with a sincere smile and a fresh plate of breakfast for Weiss.

Weiss finally wore her first smile of the day at the sight of the balding yet happy butler. "Perfect timing as usual, Klein."

Though Weiss knew it was more practiced timing rather than luck. But she and Klein kept that to themselves as it was their little inside joke.

"Not as perfect as my little snow angel." Klein started with a professional tone that hid the sincere love and care that hid underneath. "Now eat up, don't want you to be late for school." He then turned to look at Whitely and then to the matriarch of the house before heading back to the kitchen. However, Weiss had one more thing she needed from Klein.

"Klein, wait." To anyone else, it sounded like an order, but really it was more of a request with how friendly her voice always was towards Klein.

Klein spun around effortlessly. "Yes?"

"Are you free during the festival?"

"Of course, Dear." Klein wore his ever present warm smile.

"Great, I could really use your wonderful cooking skills for my class's diner that we'll be putting up. It'll be a costume themed diner so feel free to dress up if you wish." Weiss noticed her mother perk up in the corner of her eye, her mother eyeing her with curiosity. Weiss chose to ignore it however.

"I will happily help." Klein bowed briefly with a happy smile and continued his trek to the kitchen.

Once Klein had left the room, Weiss' mother let out a soft yet smug sounding chuckle before sipping on her glass of wine and then finally speaking. Unsurprisingly, it was also the first thing Weiss had heard her mother say all week. "A costumed themed diner, you say. What will my beloved Weiss be dressing up as?"

Weiss stabbed her eggs with a bit too much force, causing the metal fork to clang against the overly fancy fine china. A sudden fear rose up inside her. Her mother was interested in something in her life and that was never a good sign.

"Well...I was thinking of going as a vampire." Despite her hesitant start, she managed to sound confident and finished it off with a bite of her eggs.

"Oh? That's a little too on the nose, don't you think? However, it does rather have a nice ring to it." Her mother took another sip of her blood colored wine with a smug grin. "Weiss Schnee the Vampire."

"That reminds me," Weiss started, ignoring her mother's attempt to rile her up. "I'll be going into town this Saturday with a classmate. I won't be home until the afternoon."

_'Thought I'd let you know….not that you care…'_

Willow's smug smile turned to a frown and she went back to reading whatever she was reading earlier on her phone and continued to sip her wine. Something Weiss was rather grateful for since her mother became bored whenever Weiss made it clear she wasn't going to get anything out of her. Weiss continued to eat her breakfast in silence but never bothered finishing it. In fact, Weiss couldn't remember the last time she ate and finished a whole meal. She swiftly got up and put her dishes away before picking up her backpack and headed towards the front door.

"You're walking to school again, dear?" Her mother called out to Weiss with a hint of worry in her tone, but Weiss didn't bother stopping to chat as she left the dining room and made her way out of the manor.

_'Every morning's the same…'_

* * *

If Weiss had a dollar for every time she was asked out like this, She'd be able to buy her father's mining business for herself in no time at all. She's been asked out so many times in her life that she had lost track back in middle school. Some of the boys that asked her out back when she was thirteen still do so to this day, and one of them just so happened to be standing in front of her, looking rather timid and pathetic.

"Jaune, this is getting old. How many times do I have to say "No"?" With her arms crossed and a letter hanging loosely in her left hand, Weiss glared at the taller boy which created a rather comical sight for anyone who might stumble upon them behind the school's Gymnasium. To say Weiss was shorter than Jaune would have been the understatement of the entire century as the top of her head was just a mere inch away from the bottom of his chest.

"This is the last time I am going to tell you, stop putting these stupid love letters in my locker and just find someone else." Weiss demanded as she waved the letter in her hand. "Maybe you'd have better luck with someone who had red hair and is just as tall as you are."

Jaune hung his head low, his arms limp at his sides. He stayed silent for a moment, most likely afraid that anything he said would simply create his already deep, metaphorical hole even deeper. Weiss couldn't blame Jaune though, any excuse he'd try to make would only make her more irritated. Especially when her friend Pyrrha couldn't make it any more obvious that she liked him. Then again, Jaune at least had the courage to ask the person he liked out while Weiss just kept her feelings towards Ruby to herself. She silently cursed herself for being so afraid to take that leap.

_**' **Why can't I just tell her...it's just three simple words, damn it!...I'm so weak... **'**_

"Look Jaune, you're a nice guy and all, but...well, you're just not my type. Like at all, period."

Jaune laughed. A horribly pathetic laugh. "I know, you said the same thing last week...and the week before that…"

Weiss handed the letter back to Jaune. "Believe me when I say that not a single boy on the planet will win my heart…It's already taken by someone else."

Jaune began rubbing the back of his head. "Oh...well, whoever the guy is, he's pretty lucky to have won you over."

Weiss couldn't believe her ears, just how dense is Jaune anyways? **' **I practically gave him every hint possible that I don't like boys and he still thinks the person I like is a boy...my god Pyrrha, what do you see in this dense buffoon? **'**

"I suppose they are pretty lucky. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get to Homeroom class before it's too late." Weiss spun around and headed towards the direction of her class, ignoring Jaune's goodbye. She wasn't in the mood for further conversation. Besides, seeing Jaune courageously ask her out for the millionth time was making her think about how she retreated whenever she even considered confessing to Ruby.

_**' **I'm such a coward… **'**_

* * *

As Weiss walked through the school, she listened to her favorite band, Menagerie, on her phone with earbuds in her ears. The playlist had suddenly switched to Wings, a rather slow and emotional song, something Weiss really didn't want to listen to right now. It was one of the few and rare songs that has caused her to cry no matter how many times she heard it. She pulled her phone out of her Blazer's pocket and began scrolling through her playlist to find something else to listen to, preferably something that was a but more happy and energetic. However, she wasn't watching where she was going and ran right into something, knocking her to the ground and landing on her butt.

"Hey Princess, watch where you're going will ya?"

Weiss flinched at the voice, it was scarily familiar. As she looked up to see who she had just run into, her eyes went wide at the sight of Yang who was currently slightly hunched over and holding her hand up to her head. She looked exhausted and somewhat pale. Weiss frantically got to her feet and took her earbuds out of her ears, which was currently playing the song she was trying to avoid just seconds ago. "I-I'm sorry, that was really stupid of me and-"

"Okay! Too loud, Ice Queen... Just shut up, You're giving me a migraine…" Yang's eyes were shut tight for a few seconds as she grimaced.

Weiss didn't need to be a doctor to know what was wrong with Yang. She had seen it multiple times before back home. Weiss swung her backpack around to her front and dug into her outermost pocket and pulled out a small bottle of chewable pain relief medicine and handed it towards Yang.

"Here, take this."

Yang eyed the bottle for a moment and then at Weiss with a scowl. "I don't need your he-"

"Just take it. I know a hangover when I see one." Weiss wasn't in the mood to argue with Yang, especially when Yang was causing her to think about her drunken mother sitting in the garden and drinking whatever alcohol she could find until she was too drunk to function.

Yang hesitated for a moment but relented and took the bottle from Weiss and took two chewables from it before popping them into her mouth. She handed the battle back to Weiss as she chewed. However, her scowl hasn't disappeared, but at least it lessened a bit. "Why the hell do you carry around pain relievers with you?"

"Lets just say that I get more migraines than I'd like to admit. Speaking of which…" Weiss popped a painfeliever into her own mouth before putting the bottle away. It had actually been a while since she had a headache at all, maybe a good week or so since the last time she had one.

"Right…" was all Yang said before walking into the classroom next to them. Weiss was a bit confused before she realized that she and Yang were standing right in front of their Homeroom classroom. Yang Went to her seat while Weiss took her own behind Ruby, who gave her a small smile to silently say hello. Weiss wanted to smile back as she walked passed, but couldn't as everyone in class would notice, especially Coco who was already sitting in her usual seat next to Weiss'.

Weiss was about to pull out her phone to text Ruby but Mr. Port entered the class with his usual, overly exaggerated greetings. Not wanting to get in trouble, Weiss begrudgingly put her phone away. She was hoping to hang out with Ruby at their usual hiding place behind the maintenance shed like on Monday, but it looked like she would have to wait for that.

_**' **I can wait, I have plenty of chances to text her between classes. **'**_

* * *

It was impossible. It had to be. There wasn't a single opportunity to send Ruby a message during each of Weiss' classes. She tried to text Ruby in between classes like she planned but every time she tried, something always got in her way. For example, her math teacher wanted to congratulate her on a test, wasting the valuable five minutes between classes. After the math class, Coco was in a hurry to drag her to History class. Weiss eventually gave in and tried to text Ruby during class but got caught by Oobleck before she could even type in one word and had her phone taken away. Now it was already lunchtime and Ruby was probably sitting with her own friends somewhere else in the cafeteria.

"What did you score in history class, Weiss?" Pyrrha asked before stuffing mashed potatoes into her mouth.

"a hundred out of a hundred." Weiss stated, barely paying any attention to the conversation. She was currently staring at her own food, poking at it with her fork. Weiss was beyond starving yet she couldn't bring herself to care at the moment. She was really looking forward to hanging out and chatting with Ruby during lunch. It was the only time she could actually have a real conversation with Ruby without the worry of getting caught holding them back. She wanted to listen to music with her, maybe even share her earbuds with her as they sat next to each other and maybe, just maybe, lean on Ruby's shoulder and-

"Hey Weiss, are you gonna eat that cookie?" Coco pointed at Weiss' tray with her fork, interrupting Weiss' reverie. Weiss handed the cookie over quickly and without any hesitation, she didn't bother saying anything or even smile as she just wanted to go back to drowning out all the noise and resume her daydreaming. Now where was she? Oh yes, leaning on Ruby's shoulder, listening to music and-

"Geez Weiss, what's wrong with you?"

"Yeah, I haven't seen you this depressed in a while. Are you feeling okay? You haven't even taken a single bite of your food." Pyrrha frowned as she stared at Weiss' tray.

Weiss set her fork down into her salad. Was it really too much to ask to be left alone to daydream? She was just about to respond when a certain friend of hers decided to join in at their table. Along with some unwanted guests.

"Hey guys, I brought company!" Trailing behind the ever so happy Penny was Jaune and Oscar. Pyrrha and Coco were a bit surprised by the the spontaneous guests to their usual table but did not protest as Penny and Oscar sat to the left of Weiss, while Jaune sat across from her and next to Pyrrha. Weiss suddenly felt cramped as Penny's shoulder pressed against her own, she was seriously not in the mood for this right now. Weiss wanted to protest but she also didn't want to sound rude, she knew with her current mood that she wouldn't be able to hold her tongue and might hurt someone's feelings. So, not wanting to be mean to her friends, she silently sat there as she listened to Penny explain how Oscar, an 8th grader from the middle school campus, was sitting in the cafeteria at the high school campus. Something that was usually not allowed at Vytal Academy.

"Oscar apparently has amazing writing skills, so the headmaster decided to give him the opportunity to take a high school level english course!" Penny's eyes seemed to gleam as she talked. Weiss managed to suppress the urge to roll her eyes, Penny didn't seem to be able to hide the fact that she likes Oscar.

"Yeah, and we're glad to have him in our class with Mr. George." Jaune added with a smile. "Even Ruby was happy for him when she found out about it.

"Speaking of Ruby, Where is she? I thought she ate lunch with you guys." Coco looked at both Jaune and Oscar.

"Oh, she wanted to study in the library." Jaune answered after taking a sip from his milk. "Apparently she has some school work to catch up on since she entered the school a bit late, ya know, catching up on some late work and all that."

"Yeah, she's been studying during lunch for the past couple of days." Oscar added as he mixed his salad with his fork. "Though, she did keep her promise of taking a break and joining us for lunch yesterday."

As Weiss listened to her friends and Ruby's friends talk, she couldn't help but notice small little details. Like how Pyrrha stared mostly at Jaune, or how Penny's cheeks tend to have a subtle red tint to them whenever she talked to Oscar. Weiss also noticed other things too, like how Oscar didn't seem bothered at all by the way Penny stared at him with gleaming, affectionate eyes but seemed to turn a bit red when Ruby was mentioned. All of this only irritated Weiss. Everyone seemed to be completely infatuated with someone and can easily go after them with nothing stopping them at all. Yet here was Weiss, wanting nothing more than to tell Ruby her true feelings towards her, but couldn't because of the risk of their families finding out. Her father would disown her if he found out she was dating a girl, regardless if Ruby was a member of the Branwen family or not. Hell, Weiss wouldn't be surprised if her father actually kicked her out of the house.

"Hey Weiss, why are you so quiet?" Jaune looked at her and then her food. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Weiss simply stared at the blonde for a moment, then looked around to see everyone staring at her. A mix of confused and worried eyes bore into her, making her feel both anxious and irritated. It was stupid, they could all be telling eachother how they really feel but none of them bothered. Why did she have to be the only one who had to risk something in order to be with the one she loved?

"I...I need to go to the bathroom…" was all Weiss said as she got up from the table and left, her hands clenched into fists as she stormed off. She couldn't stay there, she had to leave before she ended up saying something she would regret.

"...What was that about?" Oscar looked around the table, confused by Weiss' sudden behavior.

"Oh it's nothing, Just Weiss being the usual Ice Queen." Jaune said

Coco rolled her eyes and glared at Jaune. "She's not an Ice Queen, Jaune. Everyone has their bad days." Her glare suddenly weakened and she began frowning as she stabbed a piece of her stake with a fork. "Weiss just so happens to get them more often than she deserves…"

* * *

Miss Peach took a bite of her sandwich as she watched her favorite eccentric, Irish Youtuber play some horror game on her computer. Unlike the rest of the school faculty, she would rather have lunch in her office than in the cafeteria or teacher's lounge. The reason for this was because she prided herself as someone the students could come to in their time of need, including times where it may be inconvenient on her part. However, someone has yet to bother her during lunch period since she started working at the school three years ago. Until now that is.

Without any warning, Weiss burst into the room with a scowl, her feet stomping into the floor as she made her way to the couch that was sitting against the wall. She threw herself onto the couch with a loud thud and buried her head into a pillow. The room was silent for a moment as Miss Peach stared at Weiss before pausing the video on her computer. She put hur sandwich down and took off her headset and set it to the side, taking a deep breath in the process.

"Alright...What happened." Miss Peach tried her best not to sound surprised, it was the first time she had seen Weiss just burst into her office without saying a single word. Usually Weiss was so formal by knocking and waiting for Miss Peach to let her in.

For a while, Weiss didn't respond. Honestly, she just wanted to scream into the pillow for a good ten seconds. Of course, she decided against that as it was unbecoming of her. After a few more seconds of just laying there, she lifted her head from the pillow and looked Miss Peach in the eyes with a scowl. But then, she quickly frowned as she realized she was scowling at the only person who could help her.

"...I'm just depressed."

"Well, that's not entirely new." Miss Peach crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair. "What seems to be the problem this time? Is it the usual or something different?"

Weiss sat up on the couch and took her loafers off before bringing her knees to her chest. She stared at the floor as she tried to think of how to answer. "A little of both? Mother is, well...you know how she is. I still get self conscious even around my friends, and..." Weiss furrowed her brows as she thought about her friends, remembering how they kept their true feelings towards the ones they're infatuated with to themselves.

"And now I can't stop thinking about how everyone is stupid because they are too afraid to do something that should be so easy for them." Anger laced every word as it left her mouth. She wasn't really angry at her friends per se, but rather she was angry with herself and the situation she was literally born into.

Miss Peach quirked a brow. "And what are they too afraid to do?"

Weiss let out a heavy sigh, she knew she was acting a little selfish but she couldn't help it. "Two of my friends each really like someone but they are too afraid to confess to them, yet there isn't anything stopping them. Sure Pyrrha comes from a well off family like me, but her family is nothing like mine...they're not controlling and selfish…Penny on the other hand, she isn't from a well off family and I've met her father, he is such a caring individual that I could never see him being angry at her for any reason."

"Sooo...You're jealous of them?"

"...Yes." Weiss suddenly felt a little ashamed at that, she knew that her friends had every right to choose not express their feelings to their crushes. But Why was it so hard for them? If she was in their shoes, she would have asked Ruby out the second she returned to Vytal back on Monday.

"I see…" Miss Peach leaned forward then and tented her fingers over her desk, a confident, all knowing smile suddenly appeared on her face. "Does this have to do with the fact that Ruby came back?"

Weiss perked up and glared at Miss Peach. "So you did know. Why didn't you tell me back on Monday?"

Peach laughed a bit, enjoying Weiss' reaction. "Oh believe me, I didn't know until after our little session on Monday. Ozpin gave me Ruby and her sisters' files right after you left. Honestly, I'm surprised that you didn't come barging in here earlier this week."

"Well, I haven't had any problems since-"

"Since your crush miraculously came back?" Miss Peach wore a cocky smile on her face.

Weiss didn't say anything as her cheeks tinted red, she didn't really know what to say about that. Miss Peach was fully aware of Weiss' feelings towards the younger girl that had such an impact on her life. All Weiss could do was be silent as she simply rested her head on her knees and resumed looking at the floor. Miss Peach however, decided to take this opportunity to be serious for a moment.

"Welp, since you're here, I've been meaning to talk to you about your progress."

Weiss slowly lifted her head, raising her eyebrow. "What do you mean? I'm certainly a lot better since we started three years ago."

"Yes, but we've seemed to hit a dead end. You still get depressive episodes, like today, and you still have strong anxiety when it comes to your body image and your, um, your sexiality." a faint hint of red showed on Miss Peach's cheeks, she still found it a little awkward to talk about such private matters with a minor, but it was her job to talk and help students with things like this and so she soldiered on.

Weiss lowered her feet back to the floor, her hands holding onto the edge of the couch in a tight grip. She really didn't like talking about those two subjects. "I don't think I can change that. Though my body image problems might go away once puberty finally kicks in…"

_'If it ever will…'_

"Well, that shouldn't be too far away." Miss Peach tried to cheer her up, but seeing Weiss deflate even more caused her to change the subject instead. "But until then, I think we can do something about your anxiety surrounding your sexuality."

Weiss shrunk in on herself. Of all the things that troubled her, her sexuality was the most difficult to talk about. She remained silent, relying on Peach to take the lead in the conversation.

"Have you told anyone yet since the last time we talked about it? Other than your family of course, I understand why you'd never want to tell them."

She took a deep breath to try and relax, though it didn't do much to calm her. Weiss had put off talking about this for a while. Weiss had only told Miss Peach about her sexuality and the issues it has caused her just last year, and by god was it a stressful event for Weiss as it was the first time she told anyone about her sexuality. It was so bad that she nearly started crying due to the fear of what Miss peach might have thought of her. However, much to Weiss' surprise at the time, Miss Peach didn't judge her one bit and instead did everything she could to reassure her that everything was fine and that it was perfectly normal and healthy.

Now it was a year later and she still felt just as uncomfortable now as she was then. Weiss didn't bother to look away from the floor, her face was burning red and she didn't want to look Miss Peach in the eyes.

"No...I, um, I don't want to make things awkward. I know they're my friends, and they're great friends, but... I don't want them to look at me any differently..."

"Well, if they're as good as you claim them to be, I don't see why they'd look at you any differently just because of who you choose to love." Miss Peach wore her signature warm smile, Weiss figured it was the same one Miss Peach gave all the students she sees but that didn't change how real it was to Weiss. Miss Peach always was a source of warmth in Weiss' life, right next to Ruby, Coco, Pyrrha, and Penny. And of course her older sister, but that was different. There were still some...icebergs that they had to be careful not to run into whenever they were together. But regardless, Winter was the closest to Weiss than other members of her family.

"I know that but...but…"

"But you don't want to take the risk?" Weiss quickly nodded, looking rather bashful. "Weiss, life is all about making mistakes and taking risks. If it means any reassurance for you, I've met some of your friends, though briefly in the halls or in classrooms and I can assure you that you have trustworthy friends, Weiss."

Weiss smiled, a small and weak smile, but a smile nonetheless. Sure it took time to actually become Coco and Pyrrha's actual friend but they have become quite close over the years. It took a lot of trust and effort to show them that she wasn't the Ice Queen everyone thought she was.

"I have an idea." Miss Peach suddenly brought Weiss out of her reverie. "How about you come out to your friends?" Weiss suddenly froze, her face contorted in fear and caused Miss Peach to backpedal. "Or, and hear me out on this, at the very least one of them, and there is no real deadline or anything like that. Just...think about it. If need be, I can offer a little help by having you invite them here in my office. That way there won't be any risk of someone interrupting and finding out."

Weiss opened her mouth to speak, the urge to protest was strong but she failed to come up with anything. There really wasn't an excuse for not telling her friends. She wants to tell them, really she did. But, she was just scared. Scared to death of what might happen if she told anyone.

Miss Peach let out a small sigh. "How about Pyrrha? Judging by the rumors around school, I'm sure she'd love to know that Jaune doesn't even remotely have a chance of winning you over."

Weiss shook her head. "I actually talked to him earlier today about that, I think he finally got the message and will finally back off. Though, knowing how dense and stubborn he is, I'm sure he'll do it again..."

"What about Coco? She seems to be pretty open minded and trustworthy."

"M-Maybe...but she's a member of the school's newspaper, I know she can keep a secret but I can't risk it…"

Peach sighed as she tried to think of anyone else she knew Weiss was close with. "Penny?"

Weiss again shook her head. "Honestly, I'm not as close to her as Pyrrha and Coco are. Plus, I haven't known her for as long as I've known Coco and Pyrrha. I don't even think she knows about what happened between Ruby and I, she didn't live in Vytal at the time after all."

Miss Peach rubbed her temple. "Come on Weiss, you gor to choose some in your little four person friend group."

"Four? Who's the fourth person?"

"Ruby of course, she is your friend, right?"

Weiss started to play with the hem of her skirt, she had a feeling Miss Peach wasn't exactly going to like what she was about to say. "Yes, but...she isn't exactly in my group of friends..."

Miss Peach raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

Weiss' fidgeting only increased. "Well...Ruby and I have decided to continue keeping our relationship a secret."

Miss Peach suddenly groaned as she slapped her hand onto her face, surprising Weiss a little. "I can't believe you right now…"

"What? If people found out about our relationship, it would be nothing but a disaster." Weiss crossed her arms, what else was she to do about her relationship with Ruby? Write it up on a billboard for the whole town to see? She'd might as well just confess to Ruby in front of the entire town with a megaphone.

Miss Peach dragged her hand down her face and looked at Weiss. "You mean if your father found out."

Weiss darted her eyes away. "Well…"

"Have you ever thought that ruby doesn't want to keep it a secret?"

"Of course she doesn't want to keep it a secret, neither of us do!"

"Yes, but what if she actually doesn't care about what others think? What if she is just going along with keeping it a secret just for you?"

Weiss honestly hadn't thought of that. She sank back into the couch, suddenly feeling guilty. What if she was making Ruby stress out over keeping it a secret? What if Ruby keeping this secret slowly made Ruby not want to be with her? Just then, another thought struck her. One she had been suppressing for a long time.

_'What if Ruby leaves me just like the others because of all these secrets…"_

Miss peach sighed and took off her glasses to clean them with the edge of her blouse. "Weiss, can I be blunt with you?"

"I suppose..."

Miss Peach put her glasses back on and gave Weiss a stern look. "Who the fuck cares about what your ignorant bastard of a father thinks. Honestly, I'm surprised you haven't run away yet. I know for a fact that I would have run away by now if I was in your shoes at your age."

Weiss' jaw nearly dropped upon hearing that, she had not once heard Miss Peach swear before, let alone talk about someone like her father with so much hate in her voice. "I...I, um…"

"I'm not finished." Weiss shut her mouth tight and Miss Peach stood up and walked out from behind her desk and towards Weiss. "Weiss, honestly you are long overdue on being a rebellious teenager. You should do something for yourself for once and stop hiding who you truly are." Miss Peach kneeled down in front of her and replaced her stern expression with a caring smile, matched with almost motherly eyes. "I'm not telling you this as a counselor, but as someone who has watched you become stronger little by little over the last three years."

Weiss was speechless as tears threatened to spill forth, but she was able to control herself just enough to keep her tears in check. However, what happened next finally broke her resistance. Miss Peach hugged her and finally, several tears fell freely from Weiss' eyes.

"I know you can do it, Weiss."

That was all Weiss needed to hear to slowly return the hug. She had never received a hug like this before, not one with such warmth and encouragement from the person giving it to her. Weiss did her best not to lose control and sob all over Miss Peach, the last thing she wanted was to embarrass herself and get Miss Peach's blouse wet. After a few more seconds, Miss Peach broke away and smiled at her. Weiss wiped her eyes the best she could while muttering "thank you."

"I know I say this a lot, but I'm not gonna force you to come out of the closet or whatever. I can only give you advice and pray that you utilize them." Miss Peach stood up and grabbed the tissue box from her desk for Weiss to use. "I'm sorry if I overstepped my bounds...It's just, I figured you probably would have benefited from a hug considering your home life."

Weiss took a few tissues and wiped her eyes. "No, No you're fine. I needed that, really. So, um, thank you. You're also right about my friends, I should have faith in them. But-"

"You have all the time in the world, Weiss. You don't have to tell them today, tomorrow, or even next year. It's your choice. Take your time."

Weiss was silent, taking in Miss Peach's words. As much as it scared her, she really should be more open with her friends. Coming out to one of them wouldn't be too bad, right? Sharing a secret with friends is only natural, right? That's what friends do, they keep each other's secrets, as long as it wasn't unhealthy or dangerous of course. Or illegal. Ok, there were exceptions but that wasn't the point. Miss Peach was right. If Weiss wanted to become more confident in herself, she needed to take this next step eventually.

Miss Peach looked over to the clock on the wall. "Looks like lunch is almost over. I don't want to keep you from your next class."

"Right. Thank you, Miss Peach. For everything." Weiss stood up and smiled at Miss Peach before turning around to head for the door.

"Oh, there is one more thing I wanted to ask you about, Weiss." Weiss froze at the door and turned to face Miss Peach.

"Yes?" As soon as the word left her mouth, a small bag of chips was tossed at her, catching it right before it hit her face.

"Don't forget to eat." Miss Peach said with a smile.

Weiss returned a smile of her own. "I'll try."

* * *

"How about here?" Ruby pointed toward a section of the brick wall with her right hand, as her left was busy carrying a small stool in case they needed it to place their poster somewhere higher than they could reach. Weiss insisted that it wouldn't be necessary but Ruby didn't take no for an answer. They had finished their poster yesterday, along with the rest of their homeroom class and now they were out to place it somewhere on the highschool campus.

"I don't know…I don't think it would stick to the bricks too well." Weiss was barely even paying attention, to be honest. She was too deep in her own thoughts. **' **Who should I come out too...Ruby is obviously out of the question. Maybe Coco? No, she'll probably tease me even more… **'**

"Okay...oh! how about we place the poster in the cafeteria?"

Weiss hummed as she followed Ruby. Miss Peach may have said that Weiss could take her time, but Weiss was honestly determined to take this leap. She wanted to better herself. She didn't want to hide who she was anymore, especially around her friends. Or at least one of them. No need to rush in and tell everyone at once.

"Weiss? Ground Control to Major Weiss." Ruby giggled as she waved her hand in front of Weiss' face, causing her to finally pay attention.

"Major?" Weiss asked, a bit confused but the sudden rank placed in front of her name.

"Nothing, just a reference. So what's on your mind?" Ruby's smile almost seemed infectious as Weiss was unable to suppress her own smile, though it was short lived as Weiss began to frown.

"It's nothing...No, actually, I could use some advice." Maybe Ruby would know what to do. Maybe she had some sort of experience with telling friends secrets? Or maybe she herself was like Weiss and hasn't told anyone else that she's gay?

_'What a lovely little coincidence that would be…'_

"Well, I'm all ears. Fire away." Ruby chirped as she set the stool down and clasped her hands behind her back.

Weiss took a deep breath. She needed to word this right, she couldn't risk letting her tongue slip up and accidentally expose herself to Ruby. "Well...I want to tell someone something that no one else knows about me, but I'm not sure who to tell...I want to tell one of my friends, but I'm not sure who."

Ruby placed her hand on her chin. "Hmmm...are you referring to our secret?"

"No, it's...it's actually something else. Something I haven't even told you…" Weiss felt a little ashamed to admit to Ruby that even she didn't know all of Weiss' secrets.

Ruby seemed to deflate a bit but quickly recovered with a smile. "Right...um, well, if it were me I'd probably tell my sister, depending on what it is of course."

Her sister? Weiss hadn't really thought about telling Winter that she was gay. Hell she wasn't even sure what Winter thought of such people. "And... what if she disapproves?"

Ruby frowned a bit. "Then I guess I wouldn't tell her."

Weiss supposed that was only logical. She had already come up with that answer herself. "Right…"

"Sorry if I couldn't help a whole lot...I don't really have all the details." Ruby suddenly became frantic as she waved her hands in front of her. "W-which is fine! I completely understand if you want to keep it to yourself."

"It's ok and I'm sorry, it's kind of a...um, personal problem."

"I understand. Anyway, how about we go place this work of art right here in the hallway? Right outside the cafeteria? That way everyone can admire your lovely drawing of a big orange butt!" Ruby laughed as she lifted the stool and pressed on.

Weiss rolled her eyes with a smile and followed Ruby. "You're never gonna let me live that down, are you?"

"Nope!" With her signature giddy smile, Ruby led her and Weiss to the cafeteria and set the stool down.

"Ruby, maybe I should go first." Weiss said as she placed a hand on Ruby shoulder right when she was about to climb.

Ruby looked at her with a quizzical expression before a shit-eating grin formed on her face. "And here I thought you would want to think about my "big butt" again."

Weiss looked away as fast as she could to hide her face as she quickly began to burn bright red. "S-Shut up, I wasn't staring at your butt."

Ruby only laughed before stepping away, crossing her arms and smirking at Weiss. "I never said you were staring, I said you were thinking."

"I...I...I still wasn't staring!" Weiss stomped and crossed her arms in denial, puffing out her cheeks as usual. The sound of Ruby laughing echoed in the hall and Weiss couldn't help but smile at the sound of Ruby's laughter.

"Anyways, it's all yours Weiss." Ruby gestured towards the small stool.

Weiss gave a polite nod to Ruby before climbing up the ladder and began placing the poster onto the wall. Despite being on the stool, she still had to stand on her toes just so she could place the tape on the top of the poster. Once she was finished, she stepped off the stool. When she turned around, Ruby was leaning forward, inches away from Weiss' face and wore a smug smile.

"W-What?"

"They're blue."

Weiss honestly didn't get what Ruby was going on about. "My eyes? Of course they're blue."

"I'm not talking about your eyes, silly."

Weiss could feel a headache coming on. If Ruby wasn't talking about her eyes, then what was she referring to? _'The only other thing that's blue is….'_

Weiss' whole body suddenly felt terribly hot as she realized what Ruby was referring to. "You...you looked up my skirt."

Ruby simply gave her a huge smile in triumph. "Consider it payback for what you did to me on tuesday."

"W-What I-That was an accident! I wasn't trying to gr-"

"What was an accident?" A third voice joined in, a voice that filled Weiss with dread.

"Winter? W-What are you doing here?" Weiss stammered out. "A-And nothing, nothing was an accident."

"I see…" Winter took several steps towards the two girls, her expression unreadable. "I heard that this poster nonsense was finally over and thought I'd come to take a look for myself. It's a shame that the Headmaster decided to put the importance of this mundane task over extracurricular activity."

Weiss and Ruby shared glances towards each other before winter continued.

"Anyways, I was unaware that you and Ruby shared Homeroom together."

Ruby awkwardly waved at Winter. "Hi, Miss Schnee."

"Good Evening. I hope you and Weiss haven't been getting into any...trouble." Winter purposely avoided bringing up the past by name and Weiss was thankful that Winter wasn't too bothered by what happened, unlike their father.

"N-No trouble at all. I, um, I'm actually not really bothered by that whole bullying thing...all in the past." Weiss could tell Ruby was intimidated by Winter, and honestly, she didn't blame Ruby. Winter always projected herself in an intimidating fashion.

"Glad to hear it. May I borrow my sister for a moment? I would like to talk to her privately."

Ruby simply nodded and Weiss followed Winter down the hall and around a corner, just out of earshot from Ruby.

"What is this about, Winter?" Weiss had to force herself to stare into Winter's eyes, she was beyond nervous. Was this about Ruby?

"The doctor called me this morning, she says that the test results came back. I scheduled your next appointment for tomorrow morning. I'll personally take you there, we should be able to get to school by 3rd period.

Weiss suddenly felt a sliver of hope rise up within her. "What did the results say?"

Winter smiled softly. "Don't worry, she said that it isn't anything to worry about. However, she wanted to talk about the details in person."

"R-Right…" Weiss hung her head low, she wasn't sure if she could wait until tomorrow in order to hear from her doctor. Weiss felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Winter smiling down at her.

"Everything will be fine, Weiss. I'm sure Mrs. Arc will be able to help you."

Weiss smiled, she always loved it when her sister showed her caring and loving side. Weiss honestly wishes Winter showed that side of her more often, maybe than she'd find a boyfriend or something. "Thank you, Winter."

"Of course. But before you go, there is one more thing I wanted to talk to you about. Don't get too close to that Ruby girl, Weiss. Her family isn't the type of people you'd want to associate with."

Weiss' blood boiled hearing that. She may not be entirely knowledgeable about the Branwen Family, but to say that about Ruby's family was practically an insult indirectly aimed towards Ruby. However, Weiss continued her lie and nodded with cold eyes. "I know, we're just partners. We only have Homeroom together and I rarely if ever see her outside of it."

"Good, now if you'll excuse me, I planned on speaking to the Headmaster before heading home. If mother asks about me, just tell her the usual." Winter gave Weiss one last smile before taking her leave.

Weiss stood there for a moment as she watched her sister disappear around a corner. Once Winter was out of sight, Weiss scowled and clenched her fists. How dare Winter assume Ruby was anything like Raven or Qrow. Ruby certainly isn't a drunk like Qrow and she is definitely not a bitch like Raven. Weiss took a deep breath to calm her nerves before turning around to make her way back to Ruby.

As expected, Ruby was waiting for her patiently, rocking on the balls of her feet. "No offense, but your sister is really scary to talk to. She's really strict during P.E."

Weiss chuckled. "She's not that bad once you get to know her. I assure you she's capable of being a caring individual."

"Yeah, Yang is too. Kind of sucks that both our sisters don't like the idea of us being close."

"Why do you say that?"

"Isn't that what she wanted to talk to you about? She saw us together, after all."

Weiss frowned, she honestly didn't think Ruby was that observant. Well, Ruby did get older and therefore probably broke some of her bad habits like not paying attention to her surroundings, so Weiss really shouldn't be that surprised. "Yes, she did mention that, but it wasn't the reason she wanted to speak to me."

"Really? Then what was it?" Ruby tilted her head and Weiss almost imagined her as a cute puppy.

_'Well, some habits just can't be broken I guess.'_

"Well, I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so you won't be seeing me in Homeroom. However..." Weiss smiled to keep Ruby from frowning. "How about we hang out at Lunch tomorrow? Just the two of us."

"Sure, I'd love to!" Ruby's smile beamed like the sun. That smile was like a diamond in the rough, making all the depressing events earlier fade into the back of Weiss mind.

_'Maybe today wasn't too bad after all.'_


	5. I Want To Be Free

"Weiss, stop fidgeting. Everything will be fine."

"I can't"

Weiss continued to tap her finger on the side of the car door, staring out the window. It was the second time that Weiss was in Vale, the closest city to Vytal. Though, saying it was close was an exaggeration, it was a 3 hour drive from Vytal on the highway and Weiss had to wake up at 4 am just to make sure she got to her appointment on time.

"How is everything at home?" Weiss knew Winter was just trying to distract her with small talk. Regardless, Weiss appreciated the attempt but asking about home was a bad choice of topic.

"Mother is drunk, Whitley is slowly turning into father and all I have to make me smile is Klein."

"So, everything is the same as how I left it, good to know." Winter made a left down a street and a large hospital came into view. Weiss began tapping her finger just a little faster.

_'Everything is fine...Everything is going to be fine.'_

It felt like an eternity for Weiss as she watched her sister find a parking spot, both of them getting out of the car, and then finally finding the waiting room. Really it was only maybe ten minutes tops but Weiss' stress seemed to count it in hours. The waiting room wasn't too big, just enough room for maybe fifty people if Weiss had to guess. As Winter went over to the receptionist, Weiss took a seat in the middle of the room. It was early in the morning, so Weiss assumed they might not have to wait too long, especially considering there were only three other people in the waiting room. A middle aged woman reading a magazine sat in one corner alone while a mother talked to her daughter who Weiss assumed looked no older than twelve years old. The way the mother smiled and tried to reassure her nervous daughter filled Weiss with jealousy.

_'God I'm pathetic, being jealous of a child...what the hell is wrong with me?'_

Winter shortly returned from the front desk and sat down next to Weiss. "The receptionist said Mrs. Arc will be right out."

"Why do you do that?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Calling her Mrs. Arc. I know you like being professional and all, but you two were friends, weren't you? Why don't you call her by her first name?"

Winter was silent for a moment and stared off into nothing. "Saphron and I aren't that close anymore."

Weiss rolled her eyes when Winter wasn't looking, her sister always tended to keep to herself. When Weiss had told Winter about her delayed puberty, Winter had decided to help her since their parents didn't even bother to notice, or at least didn't acknowledge Weiss' lack of growth. When Winter brought her to the hospital outside of Vytal and therefore away from anyone they knew, Winter wasn't expecting to see her old classmate from her days in Vytal Academy as a Doctor at the hospital, let alone the one that would end up helping Weiss.

Weiss of course was interested about her sister's relationship with the eldest daughter of the Arc family. From what Weiss could gather on her own or from her sister, Saphron was apparently a couple of years younger than Winter and excelled in all her classes and even skipped a grade due to her grades in science and math. Sadly, Winter didn't seem to be willing to talk too much about Saphron.

A male nurse suddenly walked into the waiting room, clipboard in hand. "Weiss Schnee?"

Weiss and her sister stood up and the nurse led them out of the waiting room and into one of the many small rooms where they'd wait for Saphron. A handful of posters were taped on walls and a tall medical bed was situated on one side of the room while a counter with a sink and various items sat in small containers. Weiss took a seat on the medical bed while Winter sat in a small chair off to the side with her legs crossed and her hands clasped together on her lap. While her sister was calm and professional, Weiss was looking like she was ready to be told that she had cancer or some other fatal disease. Her hands gripped the edge of the bed and her legs hangeds rather loosely off the side.

"Weiss, relax. There's nothing to-"

"Honey, how many times do I have to tell you." Without warning, Saphron burst into the small room with her cellphone to her ear. "Unless it's an emergency like Adrian getting hurt then you can't call me at work, I'm too busy…oh please, you love me anyways. I gotta go, need to deal with a patient, love you."

Saphron stuffed her phone back into her jean pocket and let out a short laugh. "Sorry about that, but I had to answer that. You know, first call is nothing, second is concerning and the third might be an emergency. Apparently, the emergency was that I didn't remember to do laundry yesterday on my day off."

"Was that your husband?" Weiss asked and for a second, she could have swore she heard a quick and quiet chuckle from her sister.

"Wife actually, love her to death." Saphron smiled and began looking through several papers on her clipboard. "Anyways, you two didn't come all the way to the city just to hear me gush over the love of my life. So, the good news is that Weiss doesn't have any deformities or diseases that would be causing her delayed puberty."

Weiss had barely heard Saphron's good news as she was too busy being surprised by the sudden realization that Saphron had a wife. "Right. Right, so...what's the problem then?"

Saphron looked up at Weiss with a neutral expression. One that made Weiss a little uncomfortable. "How often do you eat, Weiss?"

"Didn't you ask that last time?"

"Yes, but I'd like a more detailed answer other than 'not much'"

Weiss sighed. Might as well be honest with her doctor, it was only the natural thing to do after all. "Well, I guess maybe a whole meal worth of food a day? I honestly don't think too much about it..."

Saphron leaned back against the counter. Her neutral expression became just a little bit more serious. "And how long has that trend been going on?"

Weiss' grip on the bed tightened as she glanced over towards her sister for a split second. As much as she considered Winter to be the closest family she had, even Winter only knew so much about her in regards to her issues.

"At least seven years…maybe eight or more..."

She didn't have to see Winter to know that her older sister was surprised. Weiss felt shame pry it's way from the back of her mind, she kind of knew that her lack of eating was most likely a cause for her stunted growth but to hear confirmation only made Weiss' guilt and shame grow.

"I see...well, I honestly suspected something like that." Saphron set aside her clipboard and crossed her arms. "The problem is that you're malnourished, I also wouldn't be surprised if you have a high metabolism. Either way, Since your body doesn't get the amount of nutrients you need, it doesn't consider itself ready to bear a child and therefore it hasn't started the development to do so."

"Is there anything I can do other than eat more often?" Weiss knew that just eating more was going to be a challenge and she probably won't even see any results for a long time and Weiss really didn't want to have to wait until she was in her twenties like some of the people she read about that suffered from late puberty due to health problems.

Saphron looked over at Winter for a moment and then back to Weiss, a subtle smile tugging at her lips. "Well...we could prescribe you estrogen patches to jump start the process, but I need a parent's signature."

Weiss could have swore her heart sunk straight into the depths of hell. The last thing she wanted to do was talk to her parents about this, there was a reason she came to Winter for help after all and not her mother, let alone her father.

"Can't I sign for it? I am her older sister, surely that would work." Winter asked.

Saphon suddenly had a mischievous smirk as she stared at Winter. Weiss was confused as to what was going on but was nevertheless intrigued. "As a matter of fact, Winter, you can certainly sign it."

Winter narrowed her eyes at Saphron as she seemed to try to figure out the meaning behind Saphron's out of place smile. It didn't take long however as Winter suddenly had a mischievous smile herself. "I guess you still haven't learned your lesson after all these years, huh Saphron?"

"Nope." Saphron switched to a more innocent smile and handed Winter the clipboard. "I already have the paperwork right here, all ready to go. I had a feeling that Weiss would want a little more help other than being told to eat more. Anyways, all I need is your signature... Mrs. Schnee."

Weiss' eyes shot open as she realized what was happening. "Are you...your forging mother's signature, aren't you?"

Saphron laughed as Winter began signing several forms. "Oh she used to do this all the time. Hell, I still remember when I caught her red handed back in high school and-"

"Saphron, not another word." Winter's stern voice quickly made Saphron shut up, though only reluctantly.

"Fine...you Schnees really need to learn to take a chill pill."

Winter's pen froze in place and she lifted her head to glare at Saphron. "Was that a pun?"

Saphron thought for a second and shrugged. "Huh, was never my intention but sure, why not." Winter and Weiss rolled their eyes. "God you two are so much alike yet nothing alike at the same time.

"How so?" Weiss had always wanted to know more about her sister's life when she was younger as she never really got to be close when Weiss was a child.

Saphron looked over at Winter who was nearly done signing the paperwork. She suddenly smiled as she looked back over at Weiss. "As much as I'd like to tell stories about your sister, I think that's for her to tell you on her own time. Besides, Old Ice Queen here would murder me if I said anything."

Winter suddenly stood up and handed the clipboard back to Saphron, staring down at her with a stern expression. "Tell your wife that I wish both of you good luck. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be waiting outside while you two finish things up."

Saphron didn't waver under Winter's cold gaze and simply smiled like an innocent child while giving winter a quick salute. "Will do!"

Winter stopped at the door and turned to face Weiss with a rare but genuine soft smile. "Weiss, don't worry about mother finding out, I have it all taken care of."

Weiss nodded with a smile of her own and watched winter leave the room. Once Winter was gone, Weiss let out a quiet giggle as she looked over at Saphron who was still smiling like an innocent school girl. Weiss had never seen someone not affected by Winter's cold demeanor. "The more I see you and Winter interact, the more I want to know about your relationship back in high school."

"Sorry, it's not really my place to say." Saphron said as she set aside the clipboard and put her stethoscope to her ears. "Okay, I know doctors usually do all this stuff first and all, but I thought you'd like to get the real reason you're here out of the way first. Now, go ahead and lift your blouse and Blazer please."

Weiss did as she was told and lifted her blouse and blazer just enough to reveal her belly and lower back. Saphron walked behind her and placed the cold stethoscope to her back, causing Weiss' breath to hitch.

"Sorry if it's cold." Saphron giggled and moved the stethoscope up to Weiss upper back and underneath her clothes "Breath in….breath out."

Weiss breathed in and out as saphron moved the stethoscope across her back. She was glad that Saphron couldn't see her face. This was always so embarrassing for her, especially since she didn't wear a bra, a fact that Saphron was obviously aware of. All of this caused Weiss' heart to beat faster than normal. Which was apparently funny to Saphron as the older woman suddenly giggled.

"Weiss, relax, If you let your heart run rampant like this, I can't get a good reading." Saphron always made a game of this by teasing her. Weiss just wanted this done and over with.

"Sorry...it's just that, well..." Weiss paused, questioning why she was about to say what she was going to say. She couldn't decide whether or not it was a good idea to stop herself mid sentence, but the curiosity was killing her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Weiss felt the stethoscope leave her back as Saphron's voice suddenly sounded sincere. Weiss took a deep breath, steeling herself in order to ask the question that had been lingering in her mind.

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

Saphron chuckled and walked around to Weiss' front with her arms crossed rather casually. "That depends on what it is."

Weiss decided to just be blunt about it, no point in dragging it out. "How did you come out?"

Saphron's quirked a brow before realizing what it was that Weiss was asking "Um, I don't see how that concerns you-"

"I'm gay." Weiss blurted it out, ignoring her shaking hands and racing heart. Weiss couldn't belieave she actually said it outloud, it was the second time she admitted it to someone else. She didn't dare to look at Saphron, instead focusing her attention at the pure white tiles below her.

"Oh, um, okay...I guess that it does concern you." saphron began rubbing the back of her neck and chuckled a bit. "I wasn't really expecting that, though I guess it does explain why you were so nervous and embarrassed when I gave you a physical last time." she was clearly hoping to rid the room of the awkward atmosphere and Weiss just quickly nodded while she kept her focus on the floor. The heat in her face only grew as she was reminded of the physical she went through with Saphron.

"Does your sister know?"

Weiss shook her head. Despite winter being family, she was practically on the bottom of Weiss' list, right above her parents and brother. Saphron tapped her chin, making Weiss even more nervous as she wondered what Saphron was going to say. "Well, you don't have to tell her, but considering she's practically the only family you have, I think it might be good to tell her. Of course, I wouldn't call myself an expert on that sort of thing, so take that with a grain of salt I guess."

"I don't know, what if she doesn't approve of...you know, me liking girls?"

Surprisingly, Saphron giggled at that. "Trust me, she'll love you no matter who you like."

Weiss began hugging herself, unsure what to do. Maybe Saphron was right about that but it didn't do much to convince Weiss. "Our family isn't exactly known for being open minded…"

"Weiss, coming out is a scary thing. However, it's also the most liberating thing I've experienced. Though, technically I didn't really hide it but I didn't really make it known either." Saphron took a deep breath and looked into Weiss' blue eyes. "However, whenever I did tell someone, especially my friends and family, I felt free, regardless of how they felt."

Weiss smiled, being free sounded nice. Maybe telling Winter wouldn't be so bad, Weiss just wasn't sure if it should be the first hurdle to jump over. Saphron went back to her original place behind her. The stethoscope was placed on her back once again, but this time it didn't feel as cold as before now that a pleasant warmth was residing inside her. She took a deep breath and held it for a second before letting it out.

_'I want to experience that... being free.'_

* * *

"Come on, Weiss! You can do it!"

_'No, I can't…'_

"Yeah! Ring that bell!"

_'It's too high…'_

Her hands burned and stung as she clinged to the thick rope. Her legs were tightly wrapped around it for dear life. Her thighs burned as she slid several inches downward, destroying the little progress she made just seconds before. Weiss was about 10 feet in the air with a safety mat directly below her. Honestly, she wasn't expecting to get so high when Mr. Braw-...Qrow told the class they would be rope climbing today. She was at her limit at this point and yet the bell was just out of reach by a couple of inches.

"I know Schnees like to never give up, but I think you're done for now." Qrow started with a light laugh. "How about you come back down so everyone can finally go to lunch."

Weiss didn't respond and instead began to climb again with shaking limbs. Qrow was right, her body was screaming for her to stop and give up. She couldn't blame it either, her muscles were aching and screaming for her to give up. To make the whole ordeal even harder, she was sweating like a pig. She just needed a couple more inches to reach the bell . Sadly, her body decided now was the best time to give up on her. Before she knew it, literally a single inch away from the bell, her grip on the rope loosened and the next thing she knew, she's falling like a brick. Her back slammed into the thick and firm safety mat in a matter of seconds with a loud thud. When she opened her eyes and groaned, Qrow was standing over her with a smug smile

"Told you so, Schnee. But I'll give you an A minus for effort."

Weiss sat up and winced as every part of her body felt pain in one form or another. Qrow offered her a hand but she chose to ignore it as she stood up on her own, legs shaking as her muscles begged her for a break.

"Alright, now that Weiss finally finished, you can all head to the showers and go to lunch." Qrow was already on his way out of the gym before he even finished speaking, slipping through the double doors that lead to the rest of Gymnasium.

The boys and girls split off to their respective locker rooms. Weiss usually didn't take a shower after P.E. but today was going to be an exception, her muscles needed it and she was covered in sweat and she smelled anyways. Coco opted out of taking a shower, claiming she'd rather have food than smell good, while Pyrrha chose to shower as well.

"I'm really starting to see why my sister hates Qrow so much…" Weiss stated as she squirted shampoo in her hand. "He is so aggravating with that stupid smug smile of his."

"I think Mr. Branwen means well, he is a teacher after all." Pyrrha's voice came from the other side of the small, tiled wall that separated them. "Maybe it's just his way of motivating his students."

"Yeah well, it's pretty annoying." Weiss wasn't going to admit it, but Qrow did kind of motivate her to try to reach the bell near the very end...even if it wasn't on purpose.

"Anyways, I'm all done. See you at Lunch, and don't take too long."

"I won't." And with that, Weiss was shortly left alone to finish her shower. The warm water did wonders for her sore muscles and so she decided to stay under the water for another five minutes before turning the shower off. After drying off and changing into her uniform, Weiss left the locker room and immediately made her way to the school's massive Library that she and Ruby decided to meet at for today's rendezvous .

When Weiss got to the Library, she headed for the small and isolated study rooms. It took her a moment but she managed to find room five, the one Ruby said to meet her in. When she entered, she found Ruby sitting at the table, oblivious to her surroundings while watching something on her phone with earbuds in her ears. Weiss couldn't see what Ruby was watching due to the angle but she noticed Ruby had a sad, solemn looking expression, like someone reminiscing old memories.

Once Weis was just a foot away, Ruby jolted when she heard Weiss' footsteps and quickly turned the video off and took out her earbuds, smiling at Weiss. That smile didn't make Weiss' stomach have butterflies like it often did. After seeing Ruby with such a depressing face, she couldn't help but feel that Ruby was putting on a mask.

"Weiss, you're just in time! I found this really scary movie and I had the idea of watching it whenever we had time together and now I'm rambling and I don't know how to stop so please say yes." Ruby pleaded with Puppy dog eyes and Weiss nearly melted on the spot.

_'God damn it, she knows I'd do anything she says if she uses that damn face…eight years later and I still fall for that trick.'_

"Alright, but it better not be too scary." Weiss said as she sat down on the chair to Ruby's right. She usually didn't like scary movies but she thought that if Ruby wanted to watch it with her, she'd give it a shot.

Ruby simply giggled as she put one of the earbuds in her ear and Weiss did the same with the other, scooting her chair closer to Ruby's while she was at it. Weiss suddenly became hyper aware of how close they were, their shoulders pressed firmly together and Weiss had a strong urge to lean into Ruby. Of course, she successfully fought off the urge, but that didn't stop her from wondering how Ruby would react to such an action. Would Ruby shrug her off? Would she even mind if Weiss rested her head on her shoulder?

"So, what's this movie you want to share with me?" Weiss decided to keep herself distracted by staring only at the phone and she immediately noticed the movie's title. "Sharknado? Really?"

"What? Sharks are scary!" Ruby pouted

"They are not, shark attacks aren't that common, especially here in Vytal."

Ruby crossed arms. "That doesn't make them any less scary…"

Weiss rolled her eyes with a smile. Weiss honestly couldn't see Sharks as scary beasts. Hell, She actually liked sharks quite a bit, they were such beautiful and powerful creatures and Weiss loved them for that. Though, she was definitely not a giant fan of them, It's not like she had a cute stuffed shark hidden away in her room. Nope, that would be childish and stupid. Weiss Schnee definitely doesn't cuddle with it at night either. "You're such a dolt."

Ruby smiled upon hearing Weiss call her dolt and finally set the phone down on the table leaned it against a handful of Ruby's books. It was now that Weiss noticed that they weren't textbooks but actually novels and a few comics that Weiss didn't recognize but they were surprisingly thick for normal comic books. Weiss guessed that Ruby might have become a bit of a bookworm over the years apparently. It was that thought however that made Weiss realize that she didn't really know what Ruby liked now, She hasn't seen her in eight years, that was plenty of time to form new hobbies and interests and grow to dislike old ones. Weiss quickly decided to make that a topic of conversation tomorrow because for now, Weiss just wanted to enjoy a movie with Ruby.

_'I wish we could do this more often…'_

* * *

The movie wasn't that bad, sure it was over the top and the effects were about what she expected from a movie titled Sharknado. However, she was beginning to see how sharks could be scary. They were big, fast and could tear you in half in one bite. Weiss was currently trying to decide whether it was better to be eaten whole and digested alive or have her lower half be ripped apart. Weiss was so entranced by the gore fest in front of her that she didn't even hear Ruby speak.

"W-Weiss…"

_'Okay, that's a lot of blood and guts…Maybe I should put Mr. Sharky away tonight...'_

Weiss suddenly felt her arm get squeezed and she looked over to Ruby who seemed to be having trouble looking at her directly.

"W-Weiss...you're kinda hurting my leg." Ruby had a weak smile as she glanced downward at her own leg to emphasize her point.

Weiss looked down and noticed that her fingers were digging into Ruby's leg. Her fingers clinging to Ruby's knee with her palm pressing firmly into her thigh. Weiss' reaction was instant, years of fencing caused her reflexes to kick into gear and she retracted her hand as quick as lightning. Sadly, that didn't stop the heat that was beginning to creep up on her body and the dirty thoughts suddenly running rampant in her head.

_'Oh my god I was touching her leg! How long had my hand been there!?'_

"I'm sorry...I guess I was getting a little scared."

Ruby smiled, despite her obvious embarrassment. "Really? I thought you said sharks aren't scary?"

"Well…." Weiss glanced at the screen for a second and saw a character screaming in horror as they were being eaten. "I've been wrong before." Now that she thought about it, was there anything she did that was right? When nothing came to mind, she shrugged away those thoughts and went back to watching the movie. However, she quickly regretted that decision when another brutal death of one of the characters occurred, just as gruesome as the previous ones. Weiss reached for the phone and paused the movie.

"Okay, maybe we can watch something else…" she then noticed the time in the top corner of the screen and frowned. They only had ten minutes left before they had to part ways. On the bright side, Tomorrow was Saturday and she could finally spend the whole day with Ruby.

"I think we should start heading to class, actually." Ruby said, noticing the time herself. "What's your next class, anyways?"

Weiss took her end of Ruby's earbuds out of her ear and handed it over. She slowly got up, stretching out her back. "Chemistry. I got Ciel as my partner and let me tell you, that girl cares more about punctuality than I do."

"Really? And here I thought you were the queen of punctuality." Ruby grinned as she mocked Weiss while collecting her phone and novels. Weiss may have always put a great importance to being on time, especially in the past, but now she rarely made a fuss about it. Though, she had to give credit to Coco and Pyrrha for helping her out with that. Just then, a sudden idea popped into Weiss head, one that would allow her to spend just a few more minutes with Ruby.

"H-Hey Ruby, would you like to walk me a part of the way there? Maybe take the long way?" Weiss couldn't believe what she was asking. What if Ruby saw right through her? What would she do if Ruby declined? As Weiss panicked internally, her pulse ran a mile a minute and time seemed to slow as she waited for Ruby's answer.

"Wouldn't we be late for class then?"

"Yeah...but I thought, you know, being late every now and again won't be that bad."

Ruby giggled and opened the door to the rest of the library for Weiss. "I don't have a problem with that. Lead the way, Weiss"

Weiss wasn't too worried about running into someone in the halls of school, at this point in time, everyone should be too busy rushing to class from the cafeteria which was on the other side of the campus. "Why thank you, Ruby. I'll make sure to-hmmpf!"

Just as Weiss walked through the door and turned the corner, she slammed right into something and stumbled backwards, nearly colliding with Ruby behind her.

"Weiss? Ruby? What are you two doing in the study room during lunch time?"

Weiss couldn't have lifted her head fast enough towards the source of the annoyed voice. She had run into Blake Belladonna of all people, who looked both surprised and maybe a bit annoyed that Weiss had run into her. "What am I-We were studying of course."

Blake quirked a brow. "Studying? With no textbooks or notebooks? Let alone a backpack to put them in? And last I checked, neither of you have any classes together outside of Homeroom."

Weiss cursed herself, she blurted out her excuse on instinct without any forethought. She had forgotten that she left her backpack in her locker today since there wasn't any need for her textbooks today. "Well…"

"We were watching a movie. Nothing wrong with watching a movie during lunch." Ruby had taken a step forward, standing next to Weiss.

Blake looked at Ruby for a moment and then at Weiss before sighing. "Sorry, I don't mean to sound so annoyed. I'm just under a lot of stress. Anyways, you two better hurry to class, lunch time is almost over."

"We will!" Ruby chirped and started walking towards the exit with Weiss' wrist in her hand, dragging her along.

Weiss noticed Blake eyeing them with a suspicious glare as they walked away, but lucky Blake didn't question them any further. As Weiss and Ruby walked to Weiss' chemistry class, Weiss was bracing herself for a much need talk that she had been putting off all week. She needed to say it. She didn't get the chance to do it eight years ago and she can't stand to wait any longer. Her heartbeat picked up as she prepared herself.

"Hey Ruby, do you remember the last day we saw each other before you moved?" Weiss didn't really want to be blunt but she knew it was better than beating around the bush.

Ruby began walking at a slower pace. At first, Weiss thought it was because she looked uncomfortable but was surprised when she saw Ruby look at her with a confused expression and the usual tilt of her head. "Yeah, but why bring that up?"

Weiss averted her eyes as she looked for the right words to say. She honestly expected Ruby to be uncomfortable by the subject and try to avoid it but now, seeing her just simply confused had caught Weiss off guard. "Well...I wanted to apologize for what I did and-"

"Weiss." Ruby came to an abrupt halt, causing Weiss to do the same. She bore into Weiss's eyes with stern but worried silver eyes. "How many times did you apologize for all the other things you did to me when we were kids?"

"I...I, um-"

"You apologized for every single one of them, multiple times too."

"Yes, but-"

"And what did I always say when you would frantically apologize to me?" Ruby crossed her arms as she began to smile.

Weiss sighed, she really should have seen this coming. This is Ruby she is talking to after all. "You always said that I never need to apologize because you know that I had no choice."

_'Except I did have a choice. I should have told that selfish bitch to fuck off and to never go near me or you ever again...oh who am I kidding, that wouldn't have stopped her from telling father about you and I…'_

Ruby nodded triumphantly before putting her arm around Weiss' shoulder and began walking forward while pushing Weiss along with her. "And you can bet your butt that I'm just gonna say the same thing if you try to apologize again. And besides, it was eight years ago."

_'I wish your sister would think like you, it seems like she hasn't gotten over what happened…'_

Weiss smiled at that, Ruby had a point after all. It was eight years ago, she was a completely different person back then. She was stronger now, she didn't let anyone talk her into pier pressure anymore like last time. However, there was one more thing she needed to apologize for. The necklace that Ruby gave her. That was one thing that was definitely her fault. She threw it away on her own accord, no one told her to do it. Just as Weiss was going to bring it up, Ruby took her arm away from her shoulders.

"This is your class, right? Room 313?" Ruby asked with a smile.

Weiss nodded ever so reluctantly, it looks like she had to bring up the necklace another time. She couldn't waste any more time being late for class. "Yeah, wish me luck. I can already hear Ciel giving me a lashing for being tardy."

Ruby giggled, unintentionally giving Weiss that little boost of happiness she needed for class. "Good luck, I better go to history class. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

* * *

After her last class for the day, Weiss went to the gymnasium and got changed into her fencing gear. On her way to the fencing club, she spotted Pyrrha talking to Yang as they walked towards her down the hall and almost immediately Weiss had a bad feeling in her gut. There wasn't any way to go around them. Weiss made sure to avoid eye contact with Yang as she walked past them. Luckily, it seemed like Yang didn't pay her any mind. Or so she thought.

"Hey Ice Queen!"

Weiss froze up as she heard Yang walking up behind her and slowly turned around. Pyrrha apparently stayed a few feet back to give Yang and Weiss privacy. Yang surprisingly didn't really look angry. In fact, she looked...reluctant? "What do you want, Yang? I'm kind of in a hurry and the last thing I need is you reminding me how much you hate me."

"Relax, Ice Queen." Yang frowned angrily but her voice sounded more annoyed than angry. However, what caught Weiss' attention was the fact that Yang looked nervous a little bit or maybe she was flustered? "I just wanted to...well, to say thanks for yesterday. The painkillers really helped."

Weiss had to be dreaming. No way in hell was Yang, the girl who threatened her to stay away from Ruby, was thanking her. Maybe Pyrrha talked her into it, Yang does seem rather reluctant at the moment. "You're welcome. Now if you excuse me, I need to get to the fencing club."

As Weiss turned around and walked away, Yang seemed to have one more thing to add. "Hey, don't think that this changes anything. I still don't want you anywhere near my baby sister, got it?"

Weiss smiled rather deviously. Luckily Yang could see her face at the moment or she might have decked her for it. Or maybe Yang wouldn't deck her, Weiss really didn't know and she wasn't gonna risk facing Yang to find out. "I know, I expect no less from you."

If only Yang knew that Weiss and Ruby were going to be hanging out tomorrow, going shopping, eating together at the Indigo Cafe, watch the Fall Parade on Main Street and maybe even stop by the old park they used to play at. As Weiss was just about to open the door to the fencing club, a single thought came to her. One single thought that caused her heart to pick up pace.

_'Oh god...I'm going on a date with Ruby.'_


	6. Revalations

"I'm Ruby." the girl offered her hand out towards Weiss.

Weiss hesitated at first, a bit taken back by the girl's eager friendliness. She considered taking the girl's hand but decided to just stay quiet and ignore the girl in the hopes that she goes away. What Weiss wasn't expecting was this Ruby girl to ditch her red ball and instead sit right next to Weiss, shoulder to shoulder with both their backs against the large tree.

"Why Are you crying?" Ruby tilted her head which caused her long and dark, blood red hair to fall slightly over her shoulder. It was at this point that Weiss noticed how shiny her silver eyes were, filled with a genuine, innocent curiosity.

Weiss sniffled and rubbed her eyes once more. "Why do you care?"

"Because I want to be your friend!" Ruby suddenly chirped, wearing an innocent and giddy smile that matched her shining silver eyes.

Weiss quickly looked away, burying her face into her knees. She stayed silent for a moment as she was confused by the sudden heat welling up in her face. Was she getting sick? Did she have a fever or something? But then, a sudden tap on her arm caused her to look back up at Ruby.

"What's your name?" The girl wasn't smiling anymore but her voice was still somewhat chirpy with a hint of worry.

"W-Weiss...Weiss Schnee." she choked out, her eyes finally ended their torrents before she even noticed.

"Schnee?...oh! Uncle Qrow mentions them a lot!" Ruby practically cheered like she had just finally got the punchline to a joke she had heard weeks ago. Weiss winced though as she expected the worse, knowing full well that some people didn't seem all too friendly with her family.

"He talks about Schnees sometimes but mom always covers my ears when he does and I can't ever hear what he says." Ruby giggled, a soft and light giggle that made Weiss smile, but only a small smile. She had a pretty good guess why the girl's mother covered her ears.

"Oh yeah! Do you wanna play? I got a ball that we can play with." Ruby leaned towards Weiss with a huge smile, breaking into her personal space without a single hint of care in her expression. There was something about the girl's smile that tugged at Weiss' heart, making her forget all about her previous troubles, if only for a little bit.

"O-Okay, but can we play here? I don't really want to leave this spot..."

"Sure!" Ruby hopped up and walked over towards her ball while Weiss stood up and dusted off her blue polo dress. Weiss wasn't sure why she agreed to play with the girl, maybe it was because Ruby is really happy to play with her, maybe she just wanted a distraction from her sad thoughts. For now though, Weiss didn't really care.

At first they simply kicked the ball back and forth with Weiss staying silent for the most part, unsure of what to say around this girl named Ruby. However, she eventually couldn't suppress her child instincts and began to smile as she slowly but surely began enjoying herself. As their little ball game got more intense, she even began to laugh alongside Ruby. While they were playing they talked, sharing little tidbits about themselves. Weiss was correct about her assumption that Ruby was younger than her, but not by much, only about a year and half younger but still pretty close to two years apart. Weiss didn't really care about the exact age gap as she was too busy enjoying her time with Ruby.

But sadly, they didn't get to play for too much longer as a warm and melodic voice called out beyond the cluster of bushes and trees. To Weiss, it sounds soothing and caring, like a sweet lullaby.

"Ruby! Where are you? It's time to go!"

Ruby pouted and grumbled something about her teeth as she picked up her ball. She then looked up at Weiss with uncertainty in her eyes, opening and closing her mouth and then avoiding direct eye contact with her. It was painfully obvious to Weiss the girl was nervous or at least maybe a little shy, a little unexpected considering Ruby was the one that wanted to play with her to begin with. Eventually, Ruby managed to speak but with a bit of shyness.

"Um...do you want to, maybe...play again sometime?" Ruby only stared at the ground, kicking up some dirt while she was at it.

Weiss didn't even have to think of an answer. She actually hoped deep down in her heart that Ruby would ask this. Weiss took a short step forward and did a little curtsy in an attempt to cheer Ruby up. "I would love to, Ruby."

Ruby giggled with that same giddy smile as before and Weiss felt proud that she was successful to cheer her up. Ruby was about to say something more before the warm and melodic voice called out again, this time with a bit more urgency. "I have to go now, It was nice meeting you Weiss!"

Weiss waved as she watched Ruby disappear behind the same bushes she had entered from. With curiosity fueling her, Weiss stepped a little closer to the bushes to hear the voices on the other side.

Weiss heard a giggle, similar to Ruby'a but sounded much older sounding. "There you are, Ruby, what's got you so excited?"

"I made a new friend, mom!" Ruby cheered and Weiss imagined her having the biggest smile on her face.

"Oh? That's wonderful, sweetie." Ruby's mother sounded excited and not a second sooner did Weiss hear Ruby laugh in joy. Weiss, with a growing curiosity, peeked her head out of the bushes to find that Ruby's mother had picked her up and spun her around. Surprisingly, Ruby's mother looked a lot like Ruby. Well, it was actually the reverse but Weiss didn't care about the semantics at the moment.

"I'm sorry to take you away from your new friend, but we need to get you to the dentist." Ruby pouted but her mother playfully tapped her nose. "Tell you what though, if you're a good girl and it turns out you don't have any cavities, I'll bake you some cookies when we get home."

Ruby quickly ended her pouting, nodding eagerly with a smile and ended up being hugged by her mother who giggled at how easily her daughter was bribed by cookies. Weiss felt a small pain well up inside her as she watched the mother and daughter, fighting off her mind's attempts to imagine her own mother acting like Ruby's. It just didn't fit, not in a million years.

On the bright side, Weiss made a friend. Her very first, real friend. And today Weiss decided that she'd do anything to make sure that her new friend is happy whenever she might be sad.

Just like how Ruby had done the same for her that day.

* * *

Weiss sipped at her delicious black coffee, the warm and bitter beverage warming her up after a long walk in the chilly morning air. Every now and then, she glances over at the glass doors of Indigo cafe, waiting for Ruby to walk inside. Ever since yesterday, Weiss had been frantic. She knew it wasn't technically a date, but it definitely had everything to make it a date. A meal together, walking around town, watching the parade. And to make matters worse is that the cafe owners, who knew Weiss rather well as a frequent patron, could see right through her. Nebula, a slightly older girl with dark blue hair and the de facto manager of Indigo Cafe, set a plate with a chocolate muffin on the table while giving Weiss a knowing smirk. Signalling Weiss that she was going to get teased. Again.

"Man, I haven't seen you this antsy since that time you came in here with that brunnette with the glasses. So, who's the lucky girl this time?"

"I'm just meeting up with a friend. It's our first time hanging out in years and I thought we'd spend the day together." Weiss took another sip of her coffee before setting it back down. To be honest, it was kind of the first time she and Ruby were actually hanging out without playing games meant for small children.

"That's what you said last time too, and the time before that."

"And I meant it." Weiss never actually told the girls who run the cafe of her...well, preferences. But that didn't seem to stop them from figuring it out on their own, and thank the heavens that they seemed to be discreet about it, something that Weiss was very appreciative of. In fact, it was this ability to be discreet that Weiss loved Indigo Cafe so much to begin with. The owners were friendly and respectable. Sure, Nebula seemed to enjoy teasing her, but she at least had the courtesy of doing so when no one else was around to take notice.

"Also…" Weiss diverted her eyes toward her muffin, fidgeting with her fingers. "Can you keep the teasing to a minimum when she arrives? I don't want to embarrass myself in front of her."

Nebula gave Weiss a playful wink and began walking back to the counter. "Don't worry, just think of Indigo Cafe as a safe little closet."

Weiss smiled at Nebula's little subtle way of acknowledging her request, she had to admit it was a bit clever despite being a little on the nose. It also seemed to have calmed Weiss' nerves a bit as she took a bite of her muffin, the bitter chocolate was of high quality and is always worth every penny. Weiss decided to return to her previous task of looking through the windows and glass door, watching the early morning traffic, or the lack thereof. Indigo Cafe was fairly empty this early in the morning, only a few customers seated here and there and mostly kept to themselves while using their laptops or being on their phones. And the reason for such an empty cafe with arguably the best coffee in town despite being a saturday morning? The Fall Parade. Everyone and their grandma were outside along the planned route of the parade. Eventually, the parade should pass Indigo Cafe and Weiss hoped that She and Ruby could watch it together later if they had the time.

Speaking of Ruby, she's late. Okay, maybe she wasn't that late but Weiss still smiled at the thought through her coffee cup. Over the past week, Ruby seemed so close to Weiss yet somehow also distant and hard to reach. Even when they were together, Weiss felt like there are parts of Ruby that she wasn't allowed to see. At first Weiss had shrugged it off as having to learn new things about Ruby. After all, it was a given that Ruby would end up acquiring new interests and hobbies over the years. Weiss herself had a bunch of new interests since she was ten years old, one of which is her love for coffee, something she blamed Coco for.

'I wonder if Ruby likes coffee...but then again, she does have a sweet tooth so maybe not.'

Weiss took another sip of her coffee, staring through the nearby windows. Weiss then noticed a suspicious looking girl across the street and making her way towards the cafe, wearing black wool jacket with a matching black baseball cap and typical looking sunglasses. Weiss watched her cross the street and Weiss could see strands of blood red hair underneath the girl's hat, giving Weiss a pretty good idea who the girl was.

'Is she seriously wearing a disguise… ?'

The totally not suspicious looking girl walked inside and almost instantly looked toward Weiss with a big smile. Weiss struggled not to roll her eyes as she watched the girl sit down across from her.

"What are you doing, Ruby?" Weiss smirked as she saw Ruby pout.

"Dang it, how did you know it was me?" Ruby took off her sunglasses and hooked them to the collar of her jacket.

Weiss raised a brow, looking Ruby dead in the eyes. "Because we're friends, I can spot you a mile away. Also, Why are you wearing a disguise?"

"Because, what if someone sees us together." Ruby whispered, glancing towards Nebula behind the counter. "You always said that if someone saw us, your father would catch wind of it and you'd get in trouble."

The urge to facepalm became strong as Weiss remembered herself saying those exact words back when they were kids, but "getting in trouble" was an understatement. And now that she thought about it, was Ruby seriously going this far to hide their relationship, for her? "Oh, Right. Well, you look very good in your disguise."

"Thank you!" Ruby chirped. "So, we're still going to Valentina's Tailery, right?"

"Actually, I thought we could go to Amity Mall, there are a few things I need to pick up there and we could have lunch at the food court."

"Sure, I've been wanting to check out the mall for a while, actually."

"Wonderful! But first, let's have something to eat." Weiss silently gestured for Nebula to come take Ruby's orders.

"Oh, thank god." Ruby groaned. "I'm starving!"

Nebula walked up to their table with a notepad in hand and a professional but sincere smile. "Hi, you must be Weiss' friend. What can I get'cha?"

"I'll have a chocolate muffin and a coffee, cream and five sugars."

Weiss smiled upon hearing Ruby order coffee, though she couldn't bring herself to understand why in the world Ruby needed so much sugar in her coffee, it already had so much caffeine in it.

Once Nebula wrote down the order, she gave Ruby and Weiss a polite nod and headed on back over behind the counter to make the coffee. Once she was out of earshot, Weiss began to explain the plan for the day. It was a simple shopping trip, She was going to help Ruby pick out and buy some new clothes at the mall and then surprise her with a sudden stop at the Soul of Halloween costume store that only opened during the month of October. They both needed costumes for the festival and also for a special plan Weiss had for Hallween itself.

"So,once we're done with our trip to the mall, We'll head back here for lunch and watch the parade from inside, sounds good?"

"Mhmm!" Ruby nod, clearly excited for today's activities. "I haven't seen the parade in years!

Just then, Nebula returned with Ruby's coffee and a chocolate muffin. Ruby began fishing for her wallet from her pockets but Weiss quickly stopped her. "Don't worry about it Ruby, I'm paying."

But-"

"No buts, I'm already paying for your new clothes that you clearly need, a little coffee and a muffin is nothing."

"Alright, fine...but next time, I'm paying." Weiss giggled at that, fully aware that Ruby would most likely not be able afford it.

"We'll see."

Ruby took a drink of her coffee, humming in satisfaction. "I really needed that. Thanks for the coffee, umm..."

"The name's Nebula." Nebula gave her a curt smile. "Anyway, I've got stuff to take care of, you two have fun on your little play date."

As Nebula walked away, she gave Weiss a knowing look which caused Weiss to struggle not to glare at the teasing barista. Shrugging it off, Weiss watched Ruby eat her chocolate muffin from behind her coffee mug. As she did so, she noticed how Ruby's jacket was worn as the ends of her sleeves were frayed and was also a tad too big for her, with the ends of her sleeves covering her palms. Weiss hadn't realized it before, but she had yet to see Ruby wear anything that didn't look too big on her or at least didn't cover her hands to some degree. And before Weiss knew it, she was reminded of the cut she saw on Ruby's wrist, which in turn reminded her of her thoughts from a few days ago during Miss Peach's lecture in health class. "Ruby isn't cutting herself" is what Weiss kept telling herself over and over again whenever that horrible thought crossed her mind. Hoping to keep herself distracted, Weiss decided to talk to Ruby so she wasn't trapped in her mind with her own thoughts.

"Hey, Ruby?"

Ruby stopped chewing her muffin for a few seconds, her cheeks bulging out like a chipmunk's. She quickly swallowed before responding. "What's up?"

"I was wondering. If you and your sister are living with Raven, and your...um, your mom is dead…" Weiss couldn't help but grimace, she really didn't want to say that, especially not towards Ruby. "Where's your father?"

Ruby began staring into her coffee cup, frowning all the while. Weiss hated it. Why did she ask Ruby this question that is obviously a depressing subject for her?! Admittedly, Weiss was really, really curious but damn it, she hated seeing Ruby make that solemn and depressed face. "Last I heard from him, he's still going through all that court crap. I actually haven't seen or heard from him in a while."

Ah, that made a little sense. Court cases could take months, maybe over a year to actually handle. Her father had to deal with a few regarding his mining business over the years. Though, Weiss couldn't help but think that a simple drunk driving accident would take so long to resolve. "But, it was an accident, you said he was drunk, right? Why is it taking so long?"

Ruby took a long sip from her coffee, setting it down with a shaky hand. "Well, mom wasn't….she wasn't the only victim. Apparently there was another car involved. A kid died and another had several broken bones while the mother driving the other car survived and was mostly unharmed. I think the mother sued or something? I don't really remember and honestly, I'm not really good at understanding all that legal stuff. So yeah, Dad's got a lot going on and my uncle is doing his best to help."

"Your uncle? What could an alcoholic highschool teacher like him possibly do to help?" The sudden glare Ruby gave her caused Weiss to instantly regret what she said. She honestly didn't mean to word it so harshly. However, before Weiss could apologize, Ruby ended her glaring rather quickly and just sighed.

"Sorry, I'm not mad. You're not wrong about him drinking too much, but I haven't really seen it give him any problems. Anyway, my uncle always boasts about knowing people or whatever, he never really goes into detail though. So I guess he has a lawyer friend or something." Ruby suddenly chuckled as she began to cheer up a bit. "I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he was drinking buddies with the judge."

Weiss chuckled too as she imagined Qrow at a court hearing for something he did while also drinking with the judge, singing drunkenly and flirting with the female lawyers. She'll admit, she's not exactly fond of the man, but she didn't hate him. Everyone has their demons after all. "And I'm sorry for bringing up something so depressing. This is supposed to be a fun day, where we get to hang out like the good old days and not worry about stuff like that."

"It's okay, you were just curious and I don't mind. In fact, last I heard from dad, he and uncle Qrow said that he might just be sentenced with probation. He also said that he would probably come back to Vital with us instead of taking us back to Vale with him."

"That's wonderful news, Ruby. I hope you and your sister get to see him again soon."

"Thanks." Ruby smiled as she took one last sip of her coffee. "That really means a lot."

* * *

After their breakfast, Weiss and Ruby finally made it to the mall. It was two stories, with a decently sized food court and a variety of stores that Weiss was sure to have something that Ruby liked to wear. Weiss would have to admit, she was a little worried that Ruby's disguise of a pair of sunglasses and baseball cap wouldn't be enough, but as time went by, she realized that the disguise actually wasn't too bad as the hat did hide her hair decently enough and the shadow it casted on her face combined with the sunglasses seemed to work enough at a distance.

"You got nothing to worry about Weiss!" Ruby cheered as she skipped ahead of Weiss a little. "No one will recognize me at first glance."

"I suppose you're right. So, see any clothing stores that you like?" Weiss' smile was practically permanent. It was like a dream come true, being able to hang out with Ruby like this. Sure, technically Ruby was in disguise and what not, but because of that, they didn't have to hide behind some shed or in a bunch of bushes like they usually did.

"Hmm, not yet. Is there anything that has a lot of casual... clothes..." Ruby asked, looking from one store to another while her voice trailed off and Weiss walked past her.

"There should be a store like that just a few stores down. Do you have anything specific in mind?" After a few seconds, Weiss realized that she had passed Ruby and that Ruby had stopped suddenly. When Weiss turned around, she saw Ruby staring at a glass storefront. She walked over to Ruby and was a bit surprised at what she was staring at. Behind the glass was a skateboard sitting on display that had a very crude artwork of various flowers surrounded by green fire. The store itself was some skater shop that Weiss had never heard of called Gnarly Steeze.

Ruby didn't seem to notice Weiss beside her, so Weiss tapped her on her shoulder, startling her in the process. "Huh!? Oh, sorry. We should get going."

"Do you like skateboarding?" Weiss asked before Ruby could manage to walk away from the store front, causing Ruby to pause.

Ruby didn't say anything for a few seconds before sighing. "Kind of. Though I haven't actually ridden my board in a long time…"

Weiss watched Ruby stare at the board again with a thousand yard stare, trying to figure out what might be going through Ruby's head. She then looked beyond the skateboard that was on display and noticed some clothing racks behind it. A sudden idea struck her and Weiss didn't hesitate as she grabbed Ruby's hand and began to drag her into the store. "Come on, let's check it out."

"W-What? No, we don't have to if you don't want to."

"It's fine, Ruby. It doesn't hurt to look." Surprisingly, Weiss managed to fight off an oncoming blush from holding Ruby's hand as they walked through the door and towards the clothing racks. Weiss wasn't sure what it was, but she had a gut feeling Ruby would like the store or at least some of the clothes they had to offer. Besides, she wanted to know more about Ruby and if Ruby liked skateboarding, Weiss wouldn't mind checking it out herself.

Weiss stopped at the clothing racks and began looking through them as she was a bit disappointed that Ruby seemed to stand beside her, idly twiddling her thumbs. She picked out a red and black flannel button up shirt and held it up for Ruby to see. "I think you'll look good in this, what do you think?"

Ruby, startled by the sudden suggestion, blinked as she stared at the shirt. "Umm...I don't-"

"Ruby, if you like this kind of stuff, I don't mind. If you're worried that I'll judge you for your sense of style, don't." Weiss then held the flannel shirt in front of Ruby's torso to see if it might fit and Weiss honestly liked the way it complimented Ruby's hair. "I may be a bit...classy, but that doesn't mean you have to pretend that you don't like something that isn't."

"I'm not pretending." Ruby pouted, though there was barely any power behind it.

Weiss let her arm that held the shirt drop to her side and looked directly into Ruby's eyes. "Then why were you so quick to walk away from this place when you said you liked skateboarding? You even admitted to having a skateboard."

After a few seconds of silence, Ruby sighed in defeat and began looking through the rack that Weiss had just looked through. "I'm sorry. You're right...I just, I was afraid that you might not like me if I wasn't the same as when we were kids..."

Weiss smiled softly as she shook her head and placed the flannel shirt over her arm before looking through another rack. "Ruby, I'm not shallow. I'm not gonna stop being your friend just because you changed a bit. Honestly, I already expected you to have interests that I might not exactly be into. But who knows, maybe I might want to give skateboarding a try after this."

Ruby scoffed and finally smiled at that. "No offence, but I can't see you skateboarding."

"Why not? Are you scared I might outskate you while wearing a dress?"

"Ha! I would actually pay good money to see that." Ruby laughed as she grabbed a pair of jeans that surprisingly didn't have a single hole in it like Weiss expected it to have, and placed it over her arm along with a long sleeve shirt with some random logo on it.

Weiss laughed as well as she tried to actually imagine herself on a skateboard in one of her best dresses. Yeah, that did actually sound quite ridiculous now that she thought about it. Weiss grabbed another shirt before moving on to the next rack. But then, in the corner of her eye, she saw a row of backpacks with various punk or rock styled designs on them. "Hey Ruby, do you have a backpack?"

"No, the one I had was really old and fell apart not too long ago. Why?"

Weiss walked over to the backpacks as a particular black one caught her eye. It was simple in design and had plenty of pockets. In the center it had a symbol that resembled a burning rose. "How about I buy you one along with the clothes you need?"

"Really?! Thanks!" Ruby cheered as she grabbed a pair of shorts.

* * *

"Weiss, where are we going?" Ruby groaned, hanging her head as they walked through town after their little shopping trip at the mall, each of them carrying a small bag of clothes while Ruby also wore her newly acquired backpack. "I thought we were gonna head back to the cafe after we finished shopping?"

"We have plenty of time before the parade, Ruby. Also, it's a surprise." Weiss double checked her bag's contents, making sure the few things she bought for herself was inside. A couple of skinny jeans from the skater shop she dragged ruby into, a Menagerie T-shirt, and a few other private things she managed to get.

"How far is this surprise? We've been walking for like twenty minutes!" Ruby flailed her arms, swinging her bag of clothes around carelessly.

"It should be just around the corner." And low behold, when they rounded the next corner, They had finally made it to Soul of Halloween. Weiss was delighted by the shock and excitement Ruby displayed as she squeeled and nearly tackled Weiss to the ground in her efforts to hug her.

"Oh my god! Why didn't you tell me we were buying costumes!?" Ruby squeezed Weiss in her tight embrace before grabbing Weiss hand and made a mad dash through the store's entrance.

The store's interior had a black and orange aesthetic, with fake cobwebs and pumpkins scattered about. There were rows upon rows of costumes as well as various Halloween accessories and decorations. Before they went any deeper into the store, Weiss and Ruby decided to stuff their previous purchases in Ruby's new backpack. With a giddy smile on her face, Ruby then led Weiss over to the women's section with a light skip in her step.

"How about this? Oh! No, this one!" Ruby rambled as she began piling on a few costumes she wanted to try on while Weiss just watched in glee.

Weiss was glad that Ruby was enjoying her little surprise, remembering the times when they were kids and Ruby would show off a homemade costume to Weiss at the park. The most hilarious one Ruby showed off was literally just Ruby wearing a trash can over her clothes and a lid duct taped to a beanie hat, apparently it was a punishment for a bet she had with her sister, Yang. As Weiss perused a collection of different kinds of vampire costumes, she came across a rather revealing one, with a heart shaped boob window and a very generously short skirt. Wiess briefly wondered what Ruby would think if she saw her wearing it, would Ruby think she was a slut for wearing such a thing? Or would she actually think Weiss looked sexy in such an outfit?

"Hey Weiss, look!"

a sudden tap of Weiss' shoulder dragged her thoughts back to reality as she turned to face Ruby. However, the moment she did so, Weiss nearly jumped out of her skin with a squeal when she saw a horrifying, deformed monster just inches away from her face, but quickly became rather bashful when she heard Ruby laughing her ass off at Weiss through what she now realized was a rubbery mask.

"You should have seen your face!" Ruby squealed as she clutched her sides and removed the mask.

"Ruby, Don't do that! I nearly had a heart attack!" Weiss had her hand against her chest, feeling her heartbeat pounding in her ears.

"Oh c'mon, you actually expect to take me to a halloween store and not try to scare you?" Ruby placed the mask back on it's rack and picked up her costumes that had apparently been placed on the floor in order to scare Weiss. "Anyway, did something catch your eye? You were zoning out pretty hard."

Weiss glanced over at the raunchy vampire costume she just saw. "I'm still looking. Did you find anything you like?"

"Yep!" Ruby patted the costumes she had, carrying them in her arms. "But I want to try our costumes on at the same time, that way we can see if they look good on each other!"

"A-Alright, let me just pick out a few." Weiss quickly resumed looking through the vampire costumes, struggling to hide her blush as a sudden idea came to her. A risky idea but it was to answer a very important question that she had been wondering for that past week.

Is Ruby gay?

Or at the very least maybe bi, Weiss wouldn't mind if that was the case. She just wanted to know if she had at least some sort of chance of taking her relationship with Ruby in a romantic direction. With a plan in mind, Weiss grabbed a few costumes she thought she'd look really good in, avoiding the more raunchy looking ones as Ruby waited for her. Once she had a couple of costumes, Weiss and Ruby walked over to the changing booths and Weiss offered to go first as she was intent on implementing her plan as soon as possible.

Once inside, Weiss got undressed and began to put on the costume she was sure would get a reaction from Ruby. It was a black, strapless form fitting dress that ended a few inches above her knees, the dress had numerous little bats designed into it as well to help sell the vampire theme. It also came with long, silk black gloves and a black wig. Sadly, the costume didn't come with any fangs or shoes but Weiss didn't mind, she had a few things at home in her wardrobe that she could add to the costume. Once she had the dress and gloves on, she got to the point where her plan would come to fruition. The back zipper.

With a deep breath, Weiss steeled herself. "Hey, Ruby."

"Yeah?" Ruby answered from the other side of the door to the changing booth. Weiss could see Ruby's feet roll on their heels through the empty space below the door.

"I...I need your help." Weiss cracked open the door, only revealing her face to Ruby. "I, um, I can't reach the zipper on the back."

"Oh, ok...um, hold on." Ruby quickly placed her costumes on a chair right outside the changing booths before Weiss opened the door enough for Ruby to come in with her.

Weiss was quick to turn her back towards Ruby in the hopes to hide her blush. The zipper was all the way down at her waistline, revealing her bare back to Ruby. for a while, she didn't feel Ruby's touch and Weiss wondered if she was getting the reaction she was hoping for. Weiss peered over her shoulder, seeing Ruby staring at her back shamelessly with a very obvious blush forming on her cheeks. Though, now that Weiss thought about it. This didn't really tell her if Ruby was attracted to her or is just embarrassed by the display of skin.

"Ruby, can you hurry up?" Weiss quietly muttered as she quickly became embarrassed by the way Ruby's eyes bore into her back.

"Huh? Oh, right." Ruby fumbled a bit at first with the zipper and Weiss could feel how Ruby's hands shook a little as she slowly pulled the zipper up. Both of them remained silent the whole ordeal, with Weiss being embarrassed by her own audacity to make Ruby do this sort of thing for her. If it was Coco or Pyrrha helping her with a zipper, Weiss wouldn't be bothered at all.

Once her zipper was all the way up, Weiss turned around to face Ruby. She had one more little thing that could get a reaction from Ruby. As soon as she faced her, Weiss saw Ruby's face drifted downward, staring at her collarbones and the area of skin just above her breasts.

"Do I look good?" Weiss struggled to get her voice out, she wasn't used to being gawked at like this, especially not by Ruby who looked like a deer in headlights.

"So good…" was Ruby's automatic response in a hushed voice. However, it seemed she quickly realized what she said and began waving her hands in front of her blushing face. "I, I mean, you look good. Yeah, very pretty and vampire-like!"

Weiss flushed such a deep red that she was sure there was steam fuming from her head. Ruby was flustered and said she looked pretty! Sure it wasn't exactly confirmation but it was a sign and Weiss could work with that. As embarrassed as she was, she felt a huge confidence build up within her.

'She called me pretty…'

"A-Anyway, I'll go ahead and wait for you outside." Weiss nodded as she watched Ruby spin on her heels and opened the door. But for some reason, Ruby didn't leave. She just stood there, frozen in the doorway. Weiss took a step forward and tried to peer over Ruby's shoulder as she wondered what was keeping Ruby from leaving the changing booth, but as she did so, she got a glimpse of what it was.

"Oh, hey Ruby. Fancy meeting...Weiss?"

Weiss' eyes locked with another pair that were hidden behind designer shades and all the color drained from her face. "Coco!?"

"Coco…" A timid voice drew Weiss' attention to Coco's left where a girl with long brown hair was holding hands with Coco, partially hiding behind her. Weiss remembered her name was Velvet, who's parents owned the small Valentina Tailery.

Coco smiled at Velvet and Weiss noticed her squeeze Velvet's hand as she whispered into Velvet's ear before returning her attention to Ruby and Weiss. "You're looking good in that dress, Weiss. Vampire huh?"

Weiss made sure to hide behind Ruby a bit as she really didn't want to be seen in this costume, at least not in such an awkward moment like this. "Y-Yeah...Ruby here was just helping me with the zipper."

"Right. Hey Vel, how about you go ahead and look for a costume while I chat with Weiss and Ruby for a bit? I promise I won't take too long." Coco gave a chaste kiss on Velvet's cheek, causing the girl to blush as she nodded before heading over to a row of costumes just out of hearshot.

"I need to use the bathroom…" Ruby quickly muttered and before Weiss could say anything, Ruby was already rounding a corner and disappearing entirely.

Weiss, confused by Ruby's sudden behavior, shared an awkward and confused look with Coco. The two of them now alone. Weiss was still recovering from the embarrassment of having Ruby in the changing room alone with her, and as Weiss' brain caught up to what had happened, a sudden realization hit here. Coco kissed velvet.

"You…you're-"

"Dating velvet? Yes." Coco crossed her arms and cocked her hip, giving Weiss a serious expression that rivaled that of a lion protecting their cub. "Is there a problem with that?"

"N-No! No...I just, you...I…" Weiss' couldn't process the information. Coco likes girls? Why did Coco never say anything!? "Why the hell did you never tell me you were gay!?"

"No one asked." Coco shrugged but then glared at Weiss. "Besides, does it really matter? Or does your father still sway your opinion on such matters?"

Weiss took a deep breath after realizing she yelled, this was definitely not the time to let her temper affect her. She didn't want her emotions to ruin this opportunity that was given to her. "Coco... I...I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't approve of-"

"And don't you dare say that it's...wait what?" Coco batted her eyes in surprise as she realized what Weiss was implying.

"I'm...I'm gay." Weiss choked out the words but somehow managed to maintain eye contact with Coco with building confidence, surprising herself that this was a bit easier than she thought. Though she concluded that it was probably because it was Coco, one of her closest friends. "I like girls, too."

"Huh." was all Coco said as she removed her sunglasses and shook her head, softly smiling all the while. "I'll be honest, I kind of should have seen that coming."

"What?"

"Well, I had my suspicions, but that's all it was. Suspicions."

Weiss began twiddling her thumbs. "Was...Was it that obvious?"

"Like I said, I had suspicions but you hid it pretty well." Coco walked up to Weiss and, to Weiss' surprise, gave her a hug. "But I'm happy that my fear that you wouldn't approve didn't come true. Velvet hasn't come out yet and I assured her that you wouldn't judge. So seriously, I'm really glad I don't have to tell her I was wrong in my judgement of you."

Weiss felt a little proud of herself in the fact that she was able to prove herself to Coco, and to the fact that she managed to tell Coco that she was gay. Though admittedly, Weiss found it easier to confess to that when the other person could relate. Without any hesitation, she hugged Coco back before breaking away. "You won't believe how much of a wreck I've been this past week, I've been trying to figure out how and when to come out to you or Pyrrha or whoever I trust. Now I just feel stupid for not doing it sooner."

"Well, I don't blame you for keeping it a secret for so long, I can only imagine how scared you must be of your family finding out…"

"Yeah…"

Upon seeing Weiss become a bit solemn, Coco worked her magic and wrapped her arm around Weiss' shoulders, smiling at Weiss with a teasing grin. "So, you and Ruby, huh?"

"Huh?!" Weiss suddenly became stiff. "N-N-No, Me and R-Ruby aren't...We're not dating or anything. Don't be so ridiculous..."

"Really? But I thought you guys are hiding your relationship or whatever."

"What?! How did you know that?"

Coco gave her a flat look. "Seriously? Weiss, I sit right next to you in homeroom, I see the way you look at her. I saw you and Ruby exchange that note on the day she came back. I saw you guys chatting like you guys have been friends for years back on Tuesday in P.E. and I will definitely want to know how you guys managed to be so close after what you two went through back in elementary."

Weiss facepalmed, hard. Had she really been so careless? "Still...we aren't dating. In fact, Ruby doesn't know I'm gay either."

"But you like her."

Weiss sighed. She was found out, no need to hide anymore. Coco practically figured out everything on her own. "Yes…I love her to death. I think I even loved her back when we were kids, hiding our friendship behind our families' backs."

"Woah, wait. You guys were friends back then? What the hell was all that shit you did to Ruby for then?!" Coco looked shocked, though Weiss wasn't surprised. She expected Coco to be confused.

"I was under peer pressure…"

"Let me guess...Cinder?"

Weiss curled her shaky hands into fist, glaring at the floor. "Yes…"

Coco startled Weiss as she suddenly began rubbing circles around Weiss back, calming her down. "How about we go ahead and have a double date, huh? Will that cheer you up?"

"Oh, I couldn't. I don't want to get between you and Velvet's time together."

"Nonsense, I think she'll be happy to know that you guys can relate with each other and I think it would give her a little confidence."

"Right, well...I should really check on Ruby first. She's been gone for an awfully long time." Weiss had a sudden feeling of dread pooling in her the longer Ruby took on her bathroom break. A nagging fear that Weiss thought she had suppressed was resurfacing.

"I'm sure she's fine, she just went to the bathroom."

"I know, but she might be…" Weiss cut herself off, unsure if she should continue with that sentence. "She looked really troubled, so I just want to make sure she's okay."

Coco nodded. "Fair enough, you know her better than I do. Anyway, I'm gonna go find Velvet. If you guys want, feel free to come and join us."

"I'll make sure to ask Ruby when I find her." And with that, Coco went to go find Velvet and Weiss went back into the changing booth to change back into her clothes before heading to the public bathroom. As Weiss changed her clothes, she couldn't help but wonder why Ruby had run off so quickly. Was Ruby just trying to hide their relationship by running off? Did she suddenly feel sick? Maybe she really did just have to go to the bathroom. But, then there was another option that Weiss was desperately trying to avoid as that sudden, nagging fear grew stronger. That option was giving Weiss a sense of dread as the image of Ruby's scar invaded her mind.

'No! She's not doing that! Ruby's isn't cutting herself…'

It didn't take her long to find the bathrooms and they were almost empty, minus Ruby's shoes that were visible under one of the stalls. However, as she walked closer to the stall, she heard the distinct sound of someone quietly crying. And there were only two people in the bathroom, herself and Ruby.

Weiss gently knocked on the stall door, her heart rate slowly increasing. "...Ruby?"

"Weiss?!" Ruby's voice cracked. "I...I-I'm f-f-fine, I'll...I'll be o-out in a minute!"

"Ruby, are you okay?" fear started to build within Weiss, she looked down at the space below the stall door, just in time to see a few drops of crimson splatter onto the tile floor, right in front of Ruby's shoes.

"Ruby? Ruby are you okay?!" The sight of blood made Weiss' fear rise ten fold as her heart began to race.

Suddenly, without any warning, Ruby swung the door open in a split second, startling Weiss. Ruby quickly wiped at her eyes with her sleeves with an awkward sniffle of her nose. "I-I'm okay. Really, it's no bi-big deal."

The way Ruby's voice cracked again made Weiss' heart sink. But worst of all Ruby was lying. "What about the blood?"

"W-Wh-What blood?" Ruby sniffled again, wiping her nose with her left sleeve.

Weiss narrowed her eyes, she was starting to get a little annoyed with Ruby's lies. She pointed at the drops of blood on the floor, now smudged by Ruby's shoes. "Ruby, there is blood on the floor!"

Ruby shook her head. "Oh, T-That's not mine! I swear!"

Again, another lie. It had to be Ruby's blood, Weiss saw it drop and hit the floor, Ruby was the only one in that stall. Weiss wants to shout at her, to beg her to tell her the truth. Weiss' fear is steadily rising as she prays that it wasn't true. That Ruby wasn't cutting herself. But then, she remembered what Miss Peach told her back in health class a couple of days ago. Weiss took a deep breath, composing herself. Ruby clearly didn't want to talk to her about this as it seemed Ruby was perfectly content with shamelessly lying straight to her face. If that was how Ruby was going to be, then Weiss had no choice. However, she wanted to give Ruby one more chance. One more chance to trust her and tell her the truth

"Are you sure? I mean, I could have swore I saw that blood fall and hit the floor while you were in there crying."

Ruby shook her head frantically before wiping her eyes again. "Yep. I'm fine! See? I just...I just remembered something sad...that's all." Ruby forced a smile, a very obviously forced smile that broke Weiss' heart. Ruby was that determined to keep whatever this was from her.

"Alright...Anyway, do you want to continue shopping? Coco and Velvet said we're welcome to join them if you want." Weiss forced her own smile, one that was much better than Ruby's.

"Sure...but I would rather it just be the two of us still, I don't want to ruin their date…"

"I agree...anyway, shall we get going? You still haven't tried on the costumes yet"

"Yeah..."

* * *

For the rest of their outing, Weiss couldn't focus. Her body is running completely on autopilot. All she could think about was Ruby crying in the bathroom, the drops of blood, and what she planned to do for Ruby on monday. Ruby made it look so easy, hiding behind a happy facade so effortlessly. It didn't take long after leaving the bathroom for Ruby to return to her normal self like nothing even happened. And to make matters worse, Ruby's smile bothered Weiss now that she felt that it was forced. It was strange, it almost made her want to see Ruby cry instead, not because she wants to be mean or anything towards Ruby, but Weiss just wanted her to tell the truth. She wanted Ruby to show her the pain that she is in instead of bottling it up and hiding it.

She wanted Ruby to trust her…

Now walking Ruby part of the way home, Weiss wondered if she should try asking one more time about the incident but quickly decided against it. She didn't want to end the day on a sour note, after all. Instead, Weiss gave Ruby a tight hug before they said their goodbyes in the hopes that Ruby might understand what Weiss was feeling, but Ruby still wore that smile that used to make Weiss' stomach do flips, now only making her chest tighten upon realizing what might lay behind that smile.

Once Ruby rounded the corner of the block and disappeared, Weiss immediately took out her phone and dialed a number she never thought she'd ever have to use. Unsurprisingly, it rang only a couple of times before someone answered.

"Hello?" Miss Peach's voice came from the other end, sounding confused.

"Hi, it's me, Weiss. I...I need your help." Weiss felt a sting in her eye as a sudden tear threatened to break free, quickly wiping it away and forcing herself to remain calm. She had managed to hold her composure for the rest of the day with Ruby, and now it was starting to break now that Ruby was gone.

"Sure, sure. What do you need, Weiss?" Peach spoke quickly as if to show she understood the urgency of the phone call.

"It's about Ruby…" Weiss paused, the rest of the words stuck in her throat. She hated it. She didn't want to say it. But she had to. For Ruby... "I think Ruby is cutting herself."

* * *

With one hand carrying her bag of clothes and the other carrying her costume in another bag, Ruby fumbled with the key in order to get the door open. With a bit of dexterity, Ruby twisted the key and opened the door. She took her shoes off on the mat inside and started going up the stairs to her bedroom. Ruby made sure to be quiet as Raven was sure to still be sleeping. Raven always seemed to be such a lazy woman, or at least from what Ruby could tell. Ruby honestly didn't know what to think of Raven, the older woman seemed to keep to herself for the most part but also didn't tolerate any crap. Ruby tended to try and stay on her good side, which consisted of just Ruby trying to take care of things herself, such as cleaning up after herself, making her own food, and not talking back to Raven whenever she told you to do something. The last one was something Ruby wished her older sister would try to do...

Ruby managed to successfully get to her room without being caught, closing the door behind her before dropping her bags by the door. She rushed over to her small dresser and dug through her underwear drawer where she kept a first aid kit hidden. Taking the first aid kit out, Ruby quickly took off her jacket and rolled up her right sleeve to reveal the shoddy "bandage" made of layers upon layers of toilet paper. A rather decent sized red stain managed to bleed through. Slowly, she unwrapped it, only to grimace when the last layer was removed and showed that she was still bleeding a bit, though it certainly wasn't as bad as it was when Weiss scared her by knocking on the door.

"Damn it, Weiss...Why couldn't you knock a few seconds later." Ruby muttered, a bit annoyed by Weiss' actions. She was in the middle of cutting when Weiss knocked, scaring Ruby and causing her hand to slip and make her cut too deep. It took Ruby every ounce of willpower in her body not to show how much pain she was in from the cut after that.

Ruby opened up the first aid kit and grabbed a roll of gauge along with a small tube of antibiotic cream. After applying the cream to the gauge that would cover the cut, she began wrapping her forearm. She usually took the kit with her since it could fit in her jacket pocket but she honestly thought she wouldn't need it. She thought she would be able to fight it today if it ever showed up. She wanted to fight it, she really did. It was just hard.

"Ruby!" Raven suddenly hollered from downstairs, startling Ruby and making her quicken her pace. A sudden knock on her bedroom door and Ruby now stumbled as she cleaned up her mess. "Ruby, are you here?"

"I-In a minute!" Ruby shoved the first aid kit back under her underwear and slammed her drawer shut, rushed over to the door and swung it open. "Y-Yes?"

Raven was in the middle of yawning when Ruby answered and looked at her with a lazy glare. "Where is Yang? I thought she snuck out with you?"

Ruby furrowed her brows. She had left Raven a note saying she was going shopping with a friend. "I don't know, she was asleep when I left this morning."

"God damn it." Raven rolled her eyes before gesturing for Ruby to follow her. "Well, let's go see where she ran off to this time…"

Ruby simply nodded and did what she was told. Raven was never mean and it almost seemed like she did care to at least some extent. Though whether that was because of legal reasons or because she actually saw her and Yang as family, Ruby didn't know. Ruby just hoped that things would go back to normal somehow. Though, to be honest, Ruby wasn't sure what normal was supposed to be anymore.


	7. Red Tears part 1

_"Ruby…" Ruby's mother placed a hand on her shoulder, separated only by Ruby's blanket. "I know you didn't want to move but you need to get out of the house, make new friends. I hear there is a huge park just a few blocks from here, maybe you can find someone to play with."_

_"I don't want to go to the park." that would only make her think of Weiss, and Ruby really didn't want to think about her at the moment._

_"Come on, Ruby." Her mother leaned over her, planting a kiss on her head. "We can stop and pick up cookies on the way there."_

_Ruby peaked her head out from the blanket just enough to reveal her eyes. However, she didn't say anything, hoping her mother bargained with her more. Her mother only giggled upon seeing the interest in her gleaming silver eyes._

_"Oh? That got your attention, didn't it."_

_"I want twenty cookies, all chocolatechip."_

_"Ten chocolatechip, and I'll throw in a fudge chocolate cake for dessert tonight."_

_Ruby's eyes widened and she threw the blanket off herself with a wide grin. "Deal!"_

_Her mother laughed and held her hand as they left Ruby's room and made their way into the living room. Ruby saw Yang had just finished putting her shoes on, her older sister gave Ruby a toothy smile as she noticed her and their mother._

_"Yang, are you ready to go?" her mother asked as she grabbed her car keys while Ruby put on her own shoes._

_"Yep!" Yang chirped as she hopped up to her feat, her twin pigtails bouncing on her head. "Hurry up, Ruby! I hear the park has a huge playground!"_

_Ruby pulled on her sneakers and began fumbling with the shoelaces. "Hang on, Yang! ...Stupid laces…"_

_"Here, let me." Yang kneeled in front of Ruby and tied her shoes for her with dexterous hands, finishing faster than if Ruby had done it herself by a long run. "There you go. Hey Mom, Ruby's ready!"_

_Her mother smiled softly at the sight of Yang helping Ruby. "Let's go then, I promised Ruby we'll get cookies on the way."_

_As the mother and daughter trio leave the apartment and walk towards the elevator down the hall, a young girl exited the elevator. She looked a bit older than Ruby if she had to guess and Ruby couldn't help but notice her vibrant green hair and the skateboard she carried._

_"Cool skateboard!" Ruby chirped and the green haired girl gave her a confident smile._

_"Thanks, glad you like it." the girl winked at her before opening an apartment door just a few doors down from Ruby's. Just before the girl entered her apartment, she hollered back down the hall. "If you want to learn to skate, feel free to ask!"_

_Ruby simply smiled back as the elevator doors closed. Her mother giggled, causing Ruby to look up at her. "What's so funny?"_

_Her mother smiled fondly at her. "We haven't even left the apartment and you're already making friends."_

* * *

Ruby stared up at the plain and white ceiling above her, her blanket thrown off to the side in order to let the cold morning air wash over her naked body, causing goosebumps to appear all across her skin. All she could feel was the soft bed beneath her and the small, cold, metal rose resting between her breasts. It was a peaceful early Monday morning. Well, it was peaceful up until the moment her alarm started going off on her phone for the upteenth time. Ruby didn't want to get up, she is perfectly content with staying in bed all day and skipping school. However, she knew if she didn't get up, Yang would probably barge into her room and attempt to dress Ruby herself and that is something Ruby is not going to let happen.

With a lazy groan, she managed to sit up and finally turn her alarm off. She stretched out her arms over her head, causing her necklace to rise up, brushing it's cold metallic surface across her sternum. Ruby slowly lifted the rose pendant up to inspect it, watching the morning light glimmer off of it's surface and reminding her of the day she gave it to Weiss when they were kids. She still couldn't believe Weiss could just throw it in the creak.

Ruby shook her head and slapped her hands on her cheeks a few times to wake herself up. "No, no sad thoughts…it's too early for that..."

Just as she lowered her arms, she noticed the gauge bandage on her right forearm, close to her elbow. She slowly removed the bandage to reveal her most recent cut that went horribly wrong. The cut from when Weiss found her in the bathroom didn't hurt as much as it did anymore and the bleeding had stopped. However, thanks to how deep it was, it's going to take quite some time for it to heal and is most likely going to leave a pretty noticeable scar compared to the others that criss and cross lower near her wrist. Ruby ran her thumb across her scars, staring at them solemnly. She usually made it a habit to not stare at them, but sometimes she just couldn't help it. They are there. They existed, somehow always making sure she is reminded of them. Ruby closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steeling herself for the day. Just like every day.

With much reluctance, Ruby managed to snap out of her trance and got up from her bed. She stretched out her body one more time as she basked in the cold morning air. However, she knew she couldn't enjoy it for long as she needed to get ready for school. So, Ruby quickly put on her school uniform that she had prepared the night before. Despite this preparation however, her room was an absolute mess with dirty clothes thrown everywhere. You see, Ruby had developed a habit of stripping out of her clothes the moment she went to bed and never picking them up, with her school uniform being the only exception due. Why was her uniform the only exception? Simple, the cost of the uniform came straight out of Raven's pocket and Ruby knew full well that it was more than the woman could afford.

As Ruby was getting dressed, she checked her phone for the time and nearly had a heart attack at what she saw. It was already 10:25am. School already started an hour and half ago. She had missed her first class and her second was already halfway over. Ruby quickly became frantic as she began looking for her loafers under all her dirty clothes on the floor. She managed to find them and practically hopped in place trying to put them on. As she hopped on one foot to get her second shoe on, she toppled over onto the floor, landing face first into a pile of clothes. She laid there for a couple seconds, groaning as she slowly pushed herself up. She could tell already that today was going to be horrible.

After she managed to put her last shoe on, Ruby grabbed her new backpack that Weiss bought for her that was now stuffed with her textbooks and manga and quickly ran out of her room and towards her sister's room. Ruby burst into Yang's room, unsurprised to find her still asleep. Though, it was probably more accurate to say that Yang was unconscious.

"Yang! Wake up!" Ruby shook her sister rather violently, only getting lazy, unhappy and sleepy groans in response. "Fine, stay hungover for all I care…"

Ruby slammed the door shut and was rewarded by the painful and loud groan of her sister on the other side. Satisfied with punishing her sister for being irresponsible, Ruby rushed down the flight of stairs and out the front door of the old Brawnwen home. She ran as fast as she could, ignoring her stomach's growling as she realized she missed breakfast and isn't going to eat for another hour and a half.

* * *

When she finally got to school, she was panting and sweating despite the cold Fall weather outside. Her second class, English, was already over by now and now she had to go straight to P.E., right after running for thirty minutes straight to go to school. Ruby got to the girls locker room a few minutes after P.E. started and quickly changed into her running shorts and t-shirt, followed by her tracksuit jacket that she used to hide her scars. Ruby then stuffed her backpack in her locker and slammed the door shut and made one final dash for the gymnasium, bursting through the doors. The moment she entered the gymnasium, Ruby was immediately eyed by both her fellow students and the one teacher that scared her. Weiss' older sister, Winter Schnee.

"Miss Rose!" Winter yelled from across the gymnasium as Ruby rushed over to join the rest of her fellow students, panting the whole way there. "Is there a reason you're ten minutes late for class?"

"I.." Ruby, hunched over and trying her best to catch her breath, struggling to make eye contact with the terrifying older woman. "I...I overslept...slept through my alarm…"

Winter simply gave a disappointed sigh that only made Ruby feel more terrible than she already did. "I would punish you by giving you laps, but it looks like the run you made just to get to my class on time is already enough punishment."

"I-I can still participa-"

"Oh you will definitely participate in class, miss Rose. Don't think that I'm gonna let you sit out of class activities just because you're exhausted."

"Right…" Ruby muttered with a forced smile, earning her a few laughs from the rest of her class.

"So, since miss Rose here managed to make it to class just in time, we can continue with our original plans of having the girls compete against the boys in a match to capture the flag."

Ruby, finally managing to calm her racing heart, groaned as it looked like she wasn't going to get a break. The class was quick to collect the supplies and prepare the frontline for their little skirmish. The boys team consisted of Ruby's friend Jaune as well as Jaune's friend, Lie Ren, whom Ruby wasn't too familiar with since she had no classes with him. There was also Cardin Winchester, someone whom Ruby wanted to beat the crap out of on more than one occasion just last week alone for bullying her friends Jaune and Oscar. However, she managed to restrain herself from picking any fights.

Ruby stood idly, unsure exactly how to help set up the game as all the other female students seemed to have everything taken care of for their side of the gym. She hated not having anything to do like this. Not only did it make her feel useless, but it also allowed her brain the chance to go down a rabbit hole of depressing thoughts, which would then end up overwhelming her and then she'd run away and try to calm herself down by cutting herself and then feel guilty about it and then-

"Hello, Ruby." Ruby nearly jumped by Penny's sudden enthusiastic greeting, but welcomed the distraction from her own thoughts. "How was your weekend?"

"It was fine." Ruby managed to force a smile, the same one she gave everyone when she didn't have the energy to be genuinely happy.

'If you could consider your secret best friend almost finding out that you cut yourself and then dealing with your drunken and then hungover older sister as well as the fallout afterwards as fine, then yes, it was fine...'

Ruby maintained her forced smile, hoping the resulting endorphins would help calm her nerves. "How was your's? Did you finally ask Oscar out?"

"W-What?! No...I-I don't…"

Ruby nudged Penny's arm with her own. "C'mon, I can tell you really like him. Hell, I'm sure he'd love to go on a date with a girl like you."

"Y-You really think so?"

"Of course!" Ruby chirped, hoping that she could cheer up her new friend. If not for Penny's sake, then for her own. She hated seeing other people sad. And of course Ruby is well aware that it was some kind of sick irony or whatever. Here she was, probably the saddest and most fucked up person in the whole room, and she's the one helping someone else with their own trivial problems while ignoring her own.

Penny frowned, the exact opposite reaction that Ruby was hoping for. "But, what if he doesn't like me the same way? He doesn't ever really seem to notice me all too much..."

"Well…" Before Ruby could give Penny an answer, the distinct sound of Winter's whistle signaled the beginning of their game of capture the flag. Though, despite being called capture the flag, it was just dodgeball with an added goal of capturing the enemy flag, real original. Ruby wasn't stupid, she knew exactly why Winter seemed to be insistant on having her class play dodgeball. To get back at her uncle, Qrow. And Ruby was put in the crossfire of her uncle's new rivalry with Weiss' older sister. Ever since last Tuesday, Winter had been putting her class through dodgeball games as much as she could, each one being some sort of variation of the game.

Ruby rushed the closest dodge ball and picked it up, the moment she grabbed it, she jumped back to give herself some distance, only to see a dodgeball flying straight at her, slamming into her chest and knocking her to the ground. Penny rushed to help her up while laughter came from the boys team, specifically from Cardin Winchester. Ruby groaned as she rubbed her chest, giving the older and larger boy a death glare.

"Nice dodge!" Cardin yelled over his own laughter. However, the sudden whistle from Winter's...well, whistle, made him cease his laughter.

"Cardin! Try to avoid hitting your classmates too hard!" Winter commanded from the sidelines, earning a very annoyed 'Yes mam' from Cardin.

Ruby took a deep breath to calm herself down, the last thing she needed was getting angry. She picked up her dodgeball again and took a shot at a random boy, missing him completely. Ruby just couldn't get into it today, missing almost every throw. She even got hit more times than she'd like to admit. She made it a habit to avoid Cardin but that was proving to be difficult by the end of the last round. As the round progressed, there was less and less people on Ruby's team. Eventually, it came down to Ruby, Penny, and a girl named Nora who was an old friend of Ruby's, sort of, she was more of a friend of Jaune's then her own. On the boy's team, it mostly consisted of Cardin and his so called friends. Ruby was exhausted, both mentally and physically. She wondered why the hell she was trying so hard to win a game that she gained nothing from, what was the point? And why the hell did Winter have to be so obsessed with beating her uncle? It was stupid, everything was stupid and pointless.

"Penny, look out!"

Ruby instinctively snapped her head towards Penny the second she heard someone yelling at her, just in time to see a dodgeball smash right into Penny's face and knock her to the ground. Ruby dropped her ball immediately and ran over to help her friend along with Nora. in the background, Ruby heard Winter yelling at Cardin but she ignored it. When Ruby got to Penny, she saw blood coming from Penny's nose. Luckily, Penny was conscious and seemed okay besides the tears falling down her face. Ruby was furious, her fist shaking with rage.

It all happened in an instant, Ruby snapped, instantly charging at Cardin without warning and tackled him to the ground right in front of Winter. Ruby didn't hold back as she repeatedly punched him in the face, her fists quickly stained with the boy's blood from his nose and lips. Eventually, Winter managed to get a hold of Ruby and drag her off of Cardin, but not without Ruby getting one last kick into the boy's side as she was dragged away. Winter gripped her right arm in a vice grip, right over her scar and made Ruby wince in pain.

"Go to the showers and cool off! You are in so much trouble young lady, and don't you even think about leaving for lunch, got it?" Winter snapped at her, ignoring the pained expression Ruby had.

Ruby quickly nodded and Winter let her go. Ruby did what she was told, but only because of a completely different reason. Ruby covered her right arm as she walked to the showers at a brisk pace, trying to not draw attention to herself. When she got to the girl's locker room, Ruby made a B-line for the lockers and stripped out of her clothes, shoving them into her backpack before heading to the showers. Winter may have not meant it literally, but Ruby really did need to cool off. Her heart was racing like a jackhammer and her body was shaking from adrenaline. Ruby turned the temperature to a chilling cold, instantly making her shiver. Her mind was overloaded with horrible thoughts and she was struggling to calm herself down. Eventually, Ruby's heart had slowed down a bit, all thanks to the chilling water cascading down her body. However, she was still shaking and her mind had yet to cease it's torture as she remembered an old friend back in the city, remembered an innocent kiss and the hell the shortly followed after. She remembered the moment she was told that her mother died in the hospital right after the crash.

Ruby gripped onto her right arm as the urge to cut creeped up on her, only to wince in pain from doing so. She looked down at her arm, only to be surprised to see her recent cut from Saturday had reopened and was bleeding again, the blood washing down her arm and mixed with the water at her feet. Ruby quickly turned the shower off and wrapped a towel around her torso. And just when she left the shower stall, Ruby heard the door to the gym open, accompanied by the sound of the other female students flooding into the locker room. Ruby quickly rushed back into the shower stall, cursing like a sailor under her breath. She couldn't go out there half naked, not with her scars and the blood dripping from her arm completely visible. Obviously, she couldn't walk out there with the towel only covering her arm, it wouldn't work not to mention she'd probably look stupid with only the towel on her arm.

"Hey, Ruby? You in there?" Nora knocked on the stall door.

"Y-yeah!" Ruby quickly dropped the towel and turned the water back on to pretend she was taking a shower.

"Winter said that she wants you to stay here until she comes back from dealing with Cardin and Penny's injuries."

"Okay…" Ruby muttered as she tried to use her hand to apply pressure to her cut, a futile attempt that only made it hurt more and get bloody water all over her hand.

"Apparently you broke his nose and is gonna go to the hospital."

"Great…" Ruby cursed under her breath, knowing full well that this was going to bite her in the ass later.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, Nora...Now can you please let me shower in peace?" As much as Ruby liked Nora as her friend, Nora could be exhausting at the worst times possible for her.

"Okay! And hopefully we'll see you at lunch!" Nora finally left and Ruby sighed as she leaned against one of the shower's tiled walls. Her wet skin made it easy to slide down to the floor. She sat there, naked under a freezing shower and clutching her bleeding arm for what felt like forever, waiting for everyone to leave the locker room so she could finally get dressed without someone catching sight of her scars. It wasn't anything new though, besides the bleeding arm. She always waited until everyone left before changing, using the showers as an excuse. Sometimes she washed herself, other times she didn't. Eventually, everyone was gone and Ruby could finally leave the shower stall. She left her previous towel on the shower floor since it was soaked now, so Ruby went about looking for a new one before finally drying off while being careful with her cut. Ruby then went to her locker and dug through her backpack. However, what she was looking for wasn't there.

"No no no...it has to be here!" Ruby threw her school uniform out of her bag, then her text books, before finally just dumping everything out onto the tiled floor. Her first aid kit is nowhere to be seen, along with her knife. She had forgotten them in her rush to get to school. "Fuck!"

Ruby looked down at her arm, it wasn't bleeding as much anymore but that didn't mean it had stopped, not to mention it still hurt really badly. Ruby plopped down onto the bend that sat between the rows of lockers. She was at a loss. She didn't know what to do other than just let it bleed and get dressed, she really had no other choice, she wasn't sure how long Winter was going to take before coming back and the last thing Ruby needed right now was being caught naked by her teacher, let alone seeing the scars on her arm.

With no other ideas coming to rescue her, Ruby sighed in defeat and began getting dressed. The blouse may have been white, but the blazer was black and therefore could easily hide the blood if it stains her clothes. However, Ruby was only able to get her skirt on before the pain in her arm got to her and she had to stop for a second. The bleeding still hadn't stopped, only slowed. Tears began to fall down her face as she placed her hand over the cut, hopelessly applying pressure.

"Fuck...Damn it this fucking hurts…"

"Ruby!?"

Ruby snapped her hand towards the source of her name, only to be struck with absolute fear at who she saw.

* * *

"Where the hell is she?" Weiss asked herself as she walked out of the girl's locker room.

When Weiss got to school Monday morning, she was a girl on a mission. She had to find Ruby and talk to her as soon as possible. She had to know. She had to confront her friend and hope that her fears aren't true despite how obvious it might be. Weiss wanted nothing more than to be wrong about Ruby, but all the proof was there. The scar that Weiss saw on Ruby's wrist, the blood she saw in the store bathroom on Saturday, it was all so obvious. Weiss spent nearly all day yesterday beating herself up over it, wishing she had done something sooner. Luckily Miss Peach and her managed to make a plan to bring Ruby to Miss Peach. However, that plan was ruined when Ruby didn't show up for homeroom class this morning. Weiss didn't know what to do now other than try again tomorrow. As she walked down the hall, she noticed the students of Ruby's P.E. class leaving their own locker rooms and saw Jaune, Nora, and Ren chatting together. She knew jaune was a friend of Ruby and quickly decided to ask if he knew where she was. That wouldn't look too weird, right? They were classmates, it wasn't weird for classmates to ask about another's whereabouts…right?

"Excuse me, Jaune? Do you know where Ruby is? I haven't seen her in homeroom today."

"Oh...um…well, you see..." Jaune hesitated as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Ruby's still in the locker room, but she won't be out for a while. She got into a fight with Cardin and broke his nose." Nora answered with a laugh. "Boy did she really go at it too, like an angry wolf tackling it's prey!"

"Oh…" Weiss blinked, unsure of how to process that information. Ruby was in a fight. With Cardin of all people. And Cardin was the one that was injured?

"Come on guys! I'm starving! See ya, Ice Queen!" and with that, Nora and company left Weiss standing in the hallway, right outside the locker room that Ruby was supposed to still be inside of.

At first, Weiss considered leaving for lunch, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to leave. Instead, she decided to wait outside, but after a couple of minutes of doing that, she quickly grew impatient which was then accompanied by anxiety. What if Ruby was cutting right now? She should storm inside, even if it might get her in trouble? Should she just continue to wait? Damn it, this was stressful, Weiss was tired of waiting, she had waited enough, denying what should have been obvious for days.

"Fuck it...I'm not waiting anymore." Weiss stormed into the locker room, a small amount of steam from recently used showers filled the air as Weiss walked between rows of lockers, looking for Ruby. it didn't take long though as she suddenly heard a quiet whimper a few rows down, followed by the sound of Ruby's quiet voice muttering something that Weiss couldn't make out. As she got closer, the muttering became clearer and Weiss picked up her pace.

"Fuck...Damn it this fucking hurts…".

Weiss rounded the corner and froze upon what she saw. There was blood. Quite a bit of blood on the floor between Ruby's bare feet as she sat on a bench hunched over and wearing her uniform's skirt and her bra, holding her bleeding right arm.

"Ruby!?" Weiss tossed her backpack on the floor and rushed to Ruby, startling the poor girl who was quick to try and hide her arm.

'Weiss!? W-w-what are you doing in here!?" Ruby grimaced as her own grip on her arm tightened. "Fuck…"

Weiss wasn't in the mood to deal with Ruby trying to lie her way out of this again as she gently but firmly grabbed Ruby's bleeding arm to check how bad the bleeding was. The moment she did so however, Weiss' heart sunk to her stomach. Ruby's right forearm was covered in scars that criss and crossed over each other, with one closer to her elbow being larger and deeper, not to mention bleeding.

"What happened?"

Ruby didn't answer as she was frozen in fear and tears began falling down her cheeks.

"Ruby…" Weiss stared right into Ruby's eyes as she tried her best not to sound too harsh, but then, just in the corner of her vision, below Ruby's face there was a glint of silver. Weiss looked down towards Ruby's chest, only to see a silver metal rose hanging from Ruby's neck, resting against her sternum. The same one that Ruby gave her when they were kids. The same one that Weiss threw into a creak.

"I thought I threw that away...how did you…"

Ruby frantically shook her head, trying to pull her arm away from Weiss but to no avail. "N-No...no no no no…You're not supp-You aren't su-supposed to know!"

"Ruby…plea-Ruby, hold still…" Weiss held onto Ruby's arm as she began to struggle against Weiss' grip. Ruby was freaking out and Weiss had to do something fast. So, she did the first thing that came to mind. She hugged her as tight as she could, with Ruby still trying to fight back and muttering incoherently as Weiss slowly rubbed circles on her back.

"It's okay...I'm not mad. Everything will be okay, Ruby. you're gonna be fine, Ruby."

Eventually, Ruby managed to calm down enough to stop resisting, but it took even longer for Ruby to stop her crying as Weiss continued to rub her back and whisper to her. Once Weiss felt that Ruby was calm enough to communicate, she broke away just enough for Ruby to look at her. Ruby's face was red and stained by her tears, she didn't even look directly into Weiss' eyes as her own were filled with obvious shame. Weiss stroked the back of Ruby's hand as she spoke. As much as Weiss would like to ask Ruby about the necklace that she thought she had thrown away, Weiss needed to help Ruby first and foremost.

"Ruby, I'm going to help you clean up, okay?" it took a few seconds, but Ruby managed to give her a meek nod. Weiss took a deep breath to help calm her own nerves before looking around for anything she could use to wrap around Ruby's arm. "Okay...umm. Oh! Come here."

Weiss gently helped Ruby up off the bench and walked her to one of the nearby bathroom stalls. She grabbed a decent amount of toilet paper and bundled it up before applying pressure on Ruby's cut, causing Ruby to hiss in pain.

"Sorry...I need you to hold it like that for a few seconds, can you do that for me, Ruby?" Weiss waited for Ruby, who gave her another meek and shaky nod after a moment of hesitation, and then walked them both back over to the bench where Weiss had set her backpack down. She quickly dug out her blue scarf and wrapped it around Ruby's arm, with the bundle of toilet paper kept in place underneath.

"Alright...that should hold until we get to the nurse's office…" Weiss noticed the way Ruby seemed to almost flinch upon hearing that. She could tell Ruby didn't want to go there, but what choice does Weiss have? Ruby is bleeding and Weiss still needed to bring her to Miss Peach like she planned. Weiss wasn't going to waste anymore time, She took Ruby by the hand and helped her up, ignoring the subtle way Ruby stiffened her body to make it more difficult to help her up. Weiss wasn't having it though, and with much reluctance, decided she had to be a little more forceful with Ruby if she was going to give her the help she needed.

"Come on Ruby…" Weiss forcefully pulled Ruby to her feet and found Ruby's white blouse for her uniform sitting on the bench. She picked up the blouse and began dressing Ruby. It was awkward, considering her feelings for Ruby and all, but she did her best not stare at Ruby's chest as she buttoned up her shirt, though she had to admit that Ruby's red bra was certainly a strong distraction, along with the silver rose dangling between Ruby's breasts. That necklace shouldn't even be there, Weiss threw it in a creak. Did Ruby seriously go after it? And not only that, but she kept it for all these years as well?

Ruby was scarily silent the entire time Weiss dressed her, staring at the floor and nothing else. Once Ruby was dressed, Weiss took her hand and gently squeezed it in the hope that Ruby would look at her. But nothing of the sorts happened, Ruby just continued to stare at the floor, almost as if she was ignoring her. It was painful to see Ruby like this, Weiss had never seen her look so scared and defeated.

Weiss took a deep breath and grabbed both of their backpacks before she led Ruby out of the locker room, making sure no one spotted them in the process. With her own backpack on her back, and Ruby's in her right hand while her left held tightly onto Ruby's, they walked through the empty school halls. Luckily, the school's main office wasn't too far from the gymnasium and they made it to the nurse's office rather quickly. When Weiss opened the door to the nurse's office, the nurse was in the middle of eating lunch and was clearly annoyed by the intrusion, but Weiss quickly explained that Ruby was bleeding and the nurse was quick to act, grabbing some bandages from a locked cupboard. Weiss sat Ruby down along with Ruby's backpack and was about to roll up her sleeve when Ruby suddenly grabbed her arm, blocking Weiss or the nurse from touching it.

"Ruby...you need to roll up your sleeve to-"

"No…" Ruby's eyes threaten to release tears again and Weiss honestly felt bad for doing this. She felt like a villain in this mess.

"Ruby, dear…" the nurse began. "I can't help you if you don't show me where you're bleeding."

Ruby was silent, being as stubborn as a bull. The nurse sighed and went to reach for Ruby's arm, only for Ruby to inch away from her. But then, she let out a heavy, depressed sigh. She had given up. With as much hesitation as a timid and injured puppy, Ruby rolled up her sleeve, revealing her scars to the nurse. Surprisingly, the nurse didn't freak out, but simply frowned at the sight and proceeded to remove Weiss' makeshift bandage and began to wrap Ruby's bleeding cut with a proper bandage. The Nurse gave Weiss her scarf back and Weiss stood there for a few minutes, watching the nurse work. There was one last thing she needed to do, but she had trouble forcing her legs to move in order to do it. Weiss took a deep breath and leaned towards Ruby.

"I'll be right back, I'm only gonna be gonna be gone for a few seconds, okay?"

Ruby didn't respond and Weiss couldn't bring herself to force a response out of her. She quietly left the nurse's office and only needed to walk a couple of feet before reaching her goal. Miss Peach's office. It was a few more seconds before Weiss managed to open the door and was both relieved and reluctant to see that Miss Peach was there, eating a sandwich while watching something on her computer with headphones over her ears. Luckily, the counselor noticed Weiss and paused whatever she was watching and removed her headphones as well.

"Is something wrong, Weiss?"

Weiss stood there, staring at the floor as she questioned whether or not she should even do this. She knew she had to do it of course, Weiss couldn't live with herself if she didn't do this. She managed to force the words out, but it all came out in a rushed rambling. "I found her in the locker room and she was bleeding and I took her to the nurse next door and so the nurse saw her scars and-"

"Weiss, calm down, everything will be okay." Miss Peach was quick to walk around her desk to get to Weiss, placing her hands on Weiss' shoulders. "Are you talking about Ruby?"

Weiss violently nodded her head, struggling to hold back her own tears. She had trouble believing that Ruby was hurting herself. And now that she saw the scars with her own eyes, it was a miracle that she was able to hold back her tears for so long. She was a wreck. She saw the signs last week but didn't do anything. She just told herself what she wanted to hear.

Miss Peach took the lead as they both walked out of her office and back into the nurse's office. Weiss noticed that Ruby seemed to be content with staring at her bare feet, a detail that Weiss hadn't even noticed when she was helping her back in the locker room. She was in so much of a rush to help Ruby that she didn't even notice that Ruby was barefoot. The nurse was on the phone, but upon seeing Miss Peach, she was quick to hang it up.

"Ah, I was just going to call you, Miss Peach." the nurse said nonchalantly, almost as if nothing was wrong.

"Right, how is she?" In contrast, Miss Peach didn't hide her concern as she knelt beside Ruby, who didn't even bother to give a passing glance to her.

"She has a deep cut farther up her forearm but it should be fine as long as she doesn't do anything to reopen it again, However..." It was only now when the nurse finally showed concern, frowning as she seemed to refuse to mention Ruby's scars outloud.

Miss Peach sighed and stood back up. "I know, Weiss here filled me in. If her cut is fine, do you mind if I take care of this in my office? The last thing I want is someone barging in and complaining about a runny nose while talking to her."

"That's fine, do you want me to call her parents?"

"I can take care of it." Miss Peach said as she helped, or rather forcefully helped, Ruby up on her feet and Weiss carried Ruby's backpack as they left the nurse's office.

When they entered Peach's office, Peach offered Ruby to sit on the couch that sat against the wall, which she promptly sat on without uttering a word. She was still clutching her arm and Weiss sat next to her, placing her hand onto her back to help calm her down. However, it seemed to have no effect as Ruby remained silent with the occasional tear falling from her eyes. Miss Peach sat behind her desk and began looking for her list of contacts. Once she found it and set it on her desk, she looked up at Weiss and Ruby and cleared her throat, managing to only get Weiss' attention.

"Weiss...I hate to say this, but I need you to leave."

"but...I can't just-"

"Weiss...I know you care about her, but this is a personal matter." Weiss saw the seriousness in Peach's eyes and her resolve began to waver.

"But…"

"I'm sorry, but I can't have you here while I talk with Ruby." Weiss couldn't believe this. She's Ruby's friend, she wants to be there for her and help her. "Unless, of course, Ruby wants you to stay."

Weiss' head snapped towards Ruby, hoping to hear that Ruby wanted her by her side. However, what Weiss saw made her lose all hope in that idea. Ruby's sad, depressed demeanor was replaced with one of anger as she glared at the floor.

"Ruby-"

"Leave."

The word shot right through her, like a killing blow to her heart. "...W-What?"

"Leave!" Ruby snapped, she finally looked at Weiss, staring daggers right into Weiss' eyes as tears fell down her red cheeks.

Weiss sat there for a few seconds, unable to move under Ruby's glare. Ruby was furious, all because of her. She angered Ruby. She made her cry. Weiss hesitantly got up as she tried her best not to show how hurt she felt by Ruby's response. She didn't look at either Ruby or Miss Peach as she walked towards the door. With a hesitant hand, she finally looked over her shoulder at Ruby, who had since gone back to glaring at the floor with tears falling down her face. The sight of Ruby angry and crying was enough to make Weiss storm out of the room and slam the door shut. She ran down the hall aimlessly, struggling to hold back her own tears as she couldn't get the image of Ruby crying out of her mind. She ran through an exit that led outside, and almost out of instinct, Weiss ran to the maintenance shed where she and Ruby used to meet up at. She leaned against the back wall of the shed, hiding behind it and finally let her tears fall freely. Ruby hated her now, she was sure of it. she saw it in Ruby's eyes, the way Ruby glared at her. Weiss wiped her tears away, or at least she tried to. The last thing she needed was for people to know that she was crying. But the tears kept coming. She tried thinking of something, anything that would calm herself down, with only one thing coming to mind. Something she hadn't done in a long time.

She sang the first song that came to mind.

"If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea..." Weiss sniveled as she tried to focus on singing, struggling to get her voice to come out of her throat. "I'll sail the world to find you..."


	8. Red Tears part 2

_"Come on, Ruby! I'll race ya to the playground!"_

_"Yang, wait! My shoe is undone!"_

_"Then you should have tied it better!" Yang laughed as she left her sister in the dust and ran for the playground. _

_Ruby plopped herself down on the grass and crossed her arms. "Meanie…"_

_Ruby tried her best to retie her shoelaces, but she was having trouble as she couldn't seem to get her fingers to hold onto the metaphorical bunny ears while simultaneously looping the laces around and through them. Eventually, she gave up in a huff. _

_"Need a hand?"_

_Ruby lifted her head to see a slightly older girl with bright green hair and a skateboard under her arm. "Oh, um, y-yes please…"_

_The girl smiled and kneeled down in front of her, wasting no time in tying Ruby's shoes after placing her skateboard in the grass. Ruby couldn't help but feel like the girl looked strangely familiar. "Um, do I know you?"_

_"Hmm?" The green haired girl looked up at her for a moment before going back to tying. "Oh, I'm Reese. We met a few days ago back in the apartments."_

_Ruby went wide eyed as she finally remembered. "Oh yeah! I'm Ruby, it's nice to meet you."_

_Reese giggled and finished Ruby's laces before standing up. "Nice to meet you too."_

_"Hey Reese! Come on!" A voice yelled from a skatepark just a few dozen feet from the playground._

_"On my way!" Reese helped Ruby to her feet. "I gotta hurry on back to May, wanna come along?"_

_"Oh, um…" Ruby eyed the skateboard Reese held, a small flower surrounded by bright green flames imprinted on the bottom of it. "I-I'd like to, but my sister is waiting for me at the playground."_

_"That's fine, maybe another time. Oh! And don't forget about my offer, I may not look it but I'm a pretty good skater so feel free to ask me for a lesson."_

_"Sure!" and with that, Ruby waved Reese off and ran over to the playground, where her sister was apparently watching the entire time._

_"Who's your new friend?" Yang asked with a smile._

_"Her name is Reese, she said she'd teach me how to skate!"_

_"Ha, I'm sure you'd land on your butt a lot"_

_"No way, I can totally do it!"_

_"I'd like to see you prove me wrong, sis."_

* * *

The sound of a pencil tapping was the only thing that filled the void of silence. Ruby sat on the couch, her knees raised to her chest as she stared at the floor. Her fingers dug into her arms as she fought the urge to cut. Miss Peach had asked her a few questions regarding her issue, prodding questions that Ruby guessed were subtle ways to make sure she wasn't going to kill herself or something. Luckily, they were mostly asked as yes or no questions, giving Ruby more time to keep to herself. Once the questions had ended, Miss Peach called Raven for the third time, who was no doubt busy managing Qrow's restaurant as he fulfilled his temporary return to teaching.

Ruby can't even imagine how Raven was going to react, she doesn't know Raven very well after all. In fact, Ruby had only met Raven for the first time when she and her sister moved in with her. She knew nothing about her, other than that she was her sister's biological mom and was a long time friend of her own mom and father. Well, "friend" might not exactly be accurate.

"Ruby, how are you feeling?"

Ruby didn't respond, or rather she didn't know how to respond to that. She was feeling all sorts of things. Fear, sadness, anger, shame, guilt, the list went on. To make matters worse, she still hadn't eaten anything all day, which certainly didn't help her irritability.

"Ruby…"

"I'm fine." Ruby snapped as she dug her fingers deeper into her arms, clawing at her wrist, and buried her face into her knees.

Miss Peach sighed and went back to writing her report to the Headmaster, but a knock on her door caused Ruby to flinch and Miss Peach to get up from her seat. Ruby's grip on her wrist tightened as she waited for her worst fear to come true. Miss Peach walked up to the door and gave Ruby a reassuring smile as she walked by. "That must be Raven."

Ruby heard the door open as Miss Peach greeted Raven. "Miss Branw-"

"Alright, what's the problem?" Raven, wearing a white work blouse and maroon pencil skirt, stepped past Miss Peach and into the office. She stared at Ruby for a moment with raised a brow.

Ruby was going to respond, but luckily, Miss Peach saved her from explaining as she walked over to her desk and gestured for Raven to sit. "Don't worry, we'll be getting to that in just a sec. Please, have a seat."

Raven furrowed her brows but relented and sat in one of the two chairs in front of Peach's desk. Ruby curiously watched Raven's every move. As scared as Ruby was, she also couldn't help but wonder how Raven is going to react. Despite the professional clothing of her waitress job, Raven's posture was about as you'd expect, she slumped back into the chair with her legs parted despite the tight skirt she wore.

"So, did Ruby get into a fight or something?"

Ruby winced at that, she nearly forgot about her fight with Cardin, and Peach didn't have a clue about it. Now she just hoped that maybe she could get out of that stupid mess.

"No, she did not. Though that would certainly be better than the truth…" Miss Peach let out an exasperated sigh and clasped her hands together over her desk. "There's no simple way to put this, but Ruby appears to be cutting herself."

Almost as if on instinct, Ruby curled up on herself and tightened her grip on her wrists. She wasn't expecting Miss Peach to be so blunt about it. She buried her face into her knees to hide the fact that she might start crying again, the last thing she wants right now is to cry in front of Raven.

"I...I'm sorry, what?" Raven muttered, causing Ruby to suddenly peak her eyes out from above her arms and knees and saw that Raven's expression had an odd mix of confusion and shock.

Peach sighed, she really didn't want to repeat herself. "Ruby is cutting herself. A friend of hers reported that she suspected Ruby of cutting and so I was hoping to talk to her this morning, but I guess she was late for school and missed homeroom. Just a while ago, her same friend found her bleeding from the wrist in the locker room after P.E. and helped her to the nurse's office."

Raven was silent, staring intently at miss Peach while Ruby watched Raven's face contort from shock to concerned, surprising Ruby even further. Did Raven actually care? Why? Why would this woman who had only met her about a month ago care about her? Raven shifted in her seat for a moment, sitting up properly as she became a bit more serious.

"I…" Raven paused, clearly struggling for what she should say. Ruby couldn't blame Raven for being at a loss for words, her own mother was just as speechless when she found out as well. "Are you sure?"

Miss Peach took a deep breath before looking over at Ruby. "Ruby, I hate to ask you of this but would you please show Raven your wrist?"

A silence fell upon the office as Raven and Peach looked at Ruby, with Ruby staring blankly at Peach. She took a deep breath and decided to just get it over with. She couldn't hide it anymore, no matter how badly she wants to. She rolled up her sleeve as fast as she could, like ripping off a band aid.

The moment Raven saw the scars below the gauge bandages, she almost immediately avoided looking at them. She seemed shocked as she quietly cursed to herself, but not in such a way that Ruby was expecting. If Ruby didn't know any better, Raven was actually concerned. Raven was silent for a good minute before looking over to Miss Peach.

"So what's going to happen?" Raven seemed nervous, or rather she was unsure.

"Well, for starters, I advise Ruby receives help from a mental health professional and-"

"No." Ruby suddenly muttered. "I don't need it…"

"Ruby…"

"I don't need help, it's not the first time I've gotten over it!" By the time the words left her lips, it was too late. Ruby covered her mouth instantly as she realized what she just said. "Fuck…"

Miss Peach leaned forward over her desk as she arched a brow at Ruby, staring at her intently. "Care to explain what you mean by that?"

Ruby pursed her lips as she cursed herself internally. She really needs to stop speaking without thinking first. "...I relapsed."

Miss Peach gave a heavy sigh as if another boulder was placed on her shoulders. "When?"

Ruby stayed silent for a moment, struggling to get the words to come out of her throat. "W-When mom died…"

"Hmm...She died earlier this year, right?"

Ruby quickly nodded as tears threatened to spill forth. She didn't want to continue talking about her mother, and thankfully Miss Peach seemed to understand that and shifted her attention to Raven.

"Raven, you're awfully quiet after hearing that Ruby is hurting herself." Miss Peach stared at Raven, her eyes hiding the mistrust she had for the woman.

"I just don't know what to say…" Raven seemed distant as her eyes were glued to the floor.

"Well, I suppose that's understan-" A sudden knock on the office door interrupted Peach, causing her to roll her eyes as she got up. "Excuse me for a moment."

As Miss Peach walked over to the door, Ruby stared at Raven while she wasn't looking. Raven had always been a sort of mystery to Ruby. The woman was quick to anger, tended to keep to herself for the most part, and yet there was some sort of emotion that Ruby saw in the older woman's eyes from time to time. An emotion that Ruby couldn't quite figure out. And Raven currently had that emotion in her eyes right now, appearing distant and far away.

"Ah. Headmaster Ozpin, Miss Schnee. What are you-"

"Where is she?" Ruby flinched when she heard the familiar stern, angry tone of Winter Schnee behind her and was instantly reminded of the fact that she was still in trouble for what she did to Cardin in P.E. earlier.

"Ruby Rose!" Winter called as she stormed into Peach's office, stomping over to Ruby, who only locked her eyes onto the floor as she mentally prepared to be lectured. "I thought I told you to stay in the locker room until I took care of Cardin and Penny."

"Well, you see-"

"Is that all you Schnees care about?" Raven cut in, glaring at Winter with her piercing red eyes. "Ever thought that the world doesn't revolve around you and your fucking orders?"

"Ladies, please refrain from any fighting." The headmaster stepped into the office shortly after Winter, with Miss Peach looking both confused and annoyed behind him

"She started it." Raven muttered, crossing her arms and pouting like a student who was being lectured by a teacher. To be fair, she actually went to this very same school and still knew quite a few of the older teachers who still teach there, including the headmaster himself.

Winter scoffed but obeyed the headmaster nonetheless as she stood to the side, with Peach going back to her desk and Ozpin standing beside her. Ruby suddenly felt even more anxious as everyone was silent for a good few seconds, creating an already intense atmosphere even more so. Miss Peach cleared her throat as she decided to be the first to speak before Winter and Raven could tear each other's throats out.

"So, I will try asking again." Peach did her best not to glare at Winter and managed to maintain a neutral and professional expression. "What is the reason you decided to barge into my office and lecture Ruby in front of her guardian without first explaining yourself?"

"Ruby got into a fight with Cardin Winchester, beating him and breaking his nose, right after he threw a ball into another student's face, giving them a bloody nose." Winter explained without hesitation.

"Sounds like the Winchester brat deserved it." Raven scoffed, earning her a fierce glare from Winter.

"She attacked another student."

"And? The other student just so happens to be a little sack of shit just like his father. I don't see the problem here."

"Why you-That is no reason to tackle someone and beat them into a bloody pulp!"

"Wait, what?" Raven instantly turned to Ruby with a surprised, almost excited look in her eyes. Ruby nodded, admitting to her brief moment of rage. Raven laughed, an unsurprisingly excited laugh. "Ha! I thought you probably just punched the little shit! Who knew the little wallflower had it in her to beat the snot out of someone!"

Ruby shrunk in on herself from the sudden attention she got from Raven and Winter, who resumed , a sudden cough brought the two women's attention away from her

"Ladies, I believe there is more to the issue at hand besides a simple school yard brawl." Ozpin's tone was serious, clearly losing his patience with his former students turned adults. Both Raven and Winter looked to the side, both crossing their arms and remained silent. Ozpin sighed and looked over to Peach who looked just as annoyed with the bickering women as the headmaster. "Miss Peach, what exactly is the reason Ruby came here instead of staying put like Winter told her to?"

Miss Peach removed her glasses in order to massage her temple. She had barely made any progress and she was already feeling a headache. "Weiss brought her to me after she found her alone in the locker room with blood coming from her wrist."

"What?" Winter asked almost instantly, looking just as surprised as Raven did earlier. "But.. Ruby wasn't hurt at all during or after the fight. Why was she bleeding?"

"She's cutting herself." Peach stated without a single ounce of hesitation. "Weiss, your sister, helped Ruby and took her to the nurse right before informing me of what happened."

"Wait, why was Weiss in my class's female locker room?"

Miss Peach and Winter stared at each other silently for a moment as Peach tried to figure out how to answer without revealing too much about Weiss or her off the book counseling sessions with her. In the end, she decided to just go with explaining what she did know that didn't involve any personal information.

"Weiss had a feeling Ruby might be cutting herself, so she informed me. I hoped to have Ruby come in first thing in the morning and talk, to see if what Weiss claimed was true." Peach glanced over at Ruby, who was still avoiding eye contact with anyone in the room, sitting on the couch with her knees against her chest.

Ruby wished she could just disappear right now, all this attention was starting to get to her. It was too much for her, she wanted to cut. No, she needed to cut. Everything was going wrong and there was nothing she could do about it, it could only get worse as she was sure that even more people would have to be told what was going on.

"Hmmm…" Ozpin took a sip from his ever so present coffee mug, it was almost as if the thing was a part of him with how often he carried it around with him. However, he didn't say anything, simply pondering about the dreadful information. Miss Peach however, had much to say on the matter.

"I would like to have Ruby come in a couple times a week for counseling." Miss Peach didn't waver, in fact, she was absolutely determined to help Ruby the best she could. "Also, I believe it would be beneficial for her to be moved into Mr. Branwen's P.E. class to avoid any future issues with Cardin."

Ozpin sipped again from his mug, still looking every bit serious regarding the matter. "Alright. Winter, is there anything wrong with that?"

Winter sighed but shook her head. "No. I actually agree. It would probably be better if she was in her uncle's class."

"She should also start seeing a proper psychiatrist." Peach added. "As confident as I am to help, I'm afraid I can do much outside of general guidance."

Ruby drowned out most of the conversation at this point as her focus was put more on fighting off the urge to cut. Her fingers bore into the sleeves of her blouse. With so many emotions raging inside her, all of it mixed into a state of fearful confusion as she wondered how any of this could get any worse for her.

"Miss Rose?"

Ruby looked up at Ozpin to see a soft smile on his face. "Y-Yeah?"

"I believe today's been quite the ordeal for you, how about we have you go home early."

"What? B-But what about my classes?"

"I'll make sure that Mr. Port gets the notes from your classes and you can pick them up in homeroom tomorrow." Ozpin continued to smile softly, taking a small sip from his bug as if he were having a pleasant conversation with her and not talking to the broken girl that she knew she was.

Ruby sighed in defeat, knowing full well that she really wasn't being given a choice in the matter. She nodded and slowly stood from the couch, picking up her backpack and slinging it over one shoulder. "Fine…"

"Ah, before leaving. We do need Raven to fill out a few documents." Peach began digging through her desk and handed a rather reluctant Raven several papers and a pen. "Just need you sign these stating that we've informed you of your child-erm, Ruby's problem."

Raven swiftly signed the papers and handed them back, only for Peach to hand her another paper. "What's this?"

"A Parent fact sheet, I'm obligated to give you that."

Raven's brows furrowed as she skimmed through it for a few seconds before folding it several times and shoved it into her breast pocket. She went over towards the door where Ruby awkwardly waited and led Ruby out into the hall and towards the parking lot of the school. The entire walk to the truck was done in silence with Ruby walking barefoot across the school's polished floor and then on concrete and asphalt. Ruby made a pained expression once she got to the rocky, black surface of the parking lot as she felt a slight sense of pain in her feet. Ruby didn't care. If she couldn't run away from what is going to happen next, then she might as well try to get it done and over with as soon as possible.

Once at the old grey pick-up, Ruby swung open the passenger side door and slammed it shut behind her after getting in. Raven soon followed, although she was clearly more calm as she got in. there was a sudden silence as Raven simply sat there for a few seconds, not moving at all before she finally pulled out the paper Miss Peach handed her. Ruby watched Raven in the corner of her eye, curious and surprised to see Raven actually taking her time to read it. Raven looked serious as her eyes narrowed at the fine print.

Raven's grip on the paper tightened, crumpling the paper in the process, and let her hand fall to her lap. She glanced over at Ruby before letting out a heavy sigh. "You probably want to go straight home, huh?"

Ruby didn't meet Raven's eyes and simply raised her knees to her chest, hugging herself as she glared at the dashboard in front of her. "I don't care."

"Alright." Raven sighed again and finally reached for the ignition where she left the keys inside while she was in the school. "It'll be irresponsible of me to drop you off at home, so I guess you're coming with me back to Little Miss Fortune."

* * *

When Weiss had to return to her classes, she didn't bother trying to hide how puffy her eyes were after crying. She didn't talk to her friends in class and spent the rest of her day wanting to be by herself. So by the end of the day, she was mentally exhausted as she got ready for Fencing. While she and the rest of the girls in her Fencing Club changed into their gear, everyone was chatting excitedly while Weiss kept to herself.

"Hey, did you hear? That guy Sun is having a party at the beach again tonight."

"Again?"

"Yeah! Want to go?"

"Sure!"

Weiss ignored the chatter of her fellow students and slammed her locker shut, startling everyone around her. She ignored the stares she received as she made her way out of the locker room and into the gymnasium, where her older sister was waiting patiently while reading something on a clipboard. As the first and only person out of the locker rooms as of yet, Weiss walked straight up to Winter and stood idly to wait for her fellow students.

"Is something bothering you, Weiss?"

"No, just tired." It wasn't exactly a lie, just half of the truth.

Winter stared at her for a moment, her eyes narrowed as if analyzing Weiss like a possible crook. "...I-"

The doors for both gendered locker rooms suddenly swung open as the rest of the Club's members entered the gymnasium and Winter cut herself off in order to begin the session. She held her clipboard under her arm and cleared her throat. "Alright everyone, glad to finally see you all again after a week of having to prepare for the upcoming festival. It's a shame I was only able to convince the headmaster to resume our extra curricular activities for only a week before going back to preparing again next Monday."

Weiss was barely listening as the only thing on her mind was Ruby. Should she try talking to her again? Would Ruby even give her the time of day? Maybe she should just leave Ruby alone for a while.

"Now let's get started, I want you guys to be in top fighting shape before the tournament next month and this week is the last week in October for us to get some practice in."

Weiss nearly groaned out loud. She had forgotten all about the upcoming regional fencing tournament. She was already so busy with her classes and studying, then adding Ruby's sudden return on top of that certainly kept Weiss' mind preoccupied. Though, it was just one more thing Weiss had to stress over now.

Winter then separated everyone in groups of two as sparring partners as usual, with Weiss being partner with another student that she once again didn't bother knowing the name of. And once again, Weiss couldn't bring herself to be at her best. Sure she was currently winning, but just barely. She couldn't care less about this spar, let alone the upcoming tournament. Why did she even join the club again? Was it because her sister was in charge of it, giving her time to spend with her? It was the only reason she could honestly come up with. But in truth, even while spending her afternoons in the fencing club with her sister, Weiss didn't feel any closer to her sister most of the time. Even in the same room as her, Winter was just too busy.

_'Maybe I should just quit...It'd be a lot easier if I could use this time studying and I'd probably be a lot less stre_-AAH!"

It all happened so fast as Weiss suddenly fell backwards and onto the safety mat with a quiet thud. She made no motion to get up as she stared up at the ceiling and heard the sound of her sparring partner rushing over and kneeling beside her, their protective mask visible on the other side of her own.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine…" Weiss sat herself up and removed her mask. _'Great, now Winter is going to come over and lecture me.'_

"Weiss." Like clockwork, Winter was already walking over to Weiss and her sparring partner, who quickly got up from their kneeling position and helped Weiss up to her feet.

"I'm fine." Weiss dusted herself off and picked up her rapier. "No need to fret."

"Weiss, can I speak to you for a moment?" Winter wasn't really giving her a choice as she was already walking over to an isolated area away from the other club members. Weiss rolled her eyes as she turned around and followed her.

"Winter, I'm fine. I was just spacing out for a second and-"

"How are you feeling?" Winter wasn't giving Weiss the stern and confident expression she usually wore when she is currently teaching. Instead, her eyes had a glint of worry in them and she had a slight frown that she seemed to be trying to avoid making.

"I...I'm fine. Like I said earlier, I'm just tired." Weiss gripped onto her rapier a little tighter. She didn't like the way Winter was looking at her, it wasn't normal. It's not the Winter she's used to.

"Does it have something to do with what happened with Ruby earlier today?"

Weiss nearly dropped her rapier in surprise. "H-How do you-"

"Miss Peach told me after I found Ruby in her office." Winter took a deep breath and sighed before she took a step forward, placing a gentle hand on Weiss' shoulder. "I'm glad to hear you helped her, but don't let it get to you. It doesn't involve you and-"

"Yes it does!" Weiss snapped, her grip on her rapier tightened to the point of turning her knuckles white. She had shut her eyes tight, hoping it'd be enough to block the tears that were beginning to form. She was sure that everyone in the gymnasium was staring at her and her sister now, wondering why on earth she snapped. To be honest, she didn't know why either, she just couldn't contain all of her stress and emotions anymore.

Without warning, Weiss was suddenly tugged along by her sister, who led her to the hall outside the gymnasium and into Winter's small office. Winter closed the door behind them before returning to Weiss. Weiss didn't question why they had suddenly just left the gymnasium, she didn't care if others saw her like this but maybe Winter wanted to save her from the embarrassment.

"What is wrong, Weiss?"

Weiss stared at her own feet, struggling and failing to hold back a few tears. She felt like a small child again, weak and scared. "Nothing…"

"Weiss...I know I'm not good at this, but I'm trying my best here…" Winter drew small circles with her thumbs on Weiss' arms. "So please, tell me what is wrong."

"I…what if she's cutting herself because of me, b-because of what I did to her back then…"

"I-I'm sure that isn't the case, Weiss." Winter failed to hide her uncertainty, which only fueled Weiss' fear.

"You don't know that!" Weiss finally looked up at her sister, glaring with tears staining her cheeks. "Ruby was my friend and yet I let that stupid bitch manipulate me into bullying her all because I'm too afraid of father!"

"...W-What?" Winter looked at her with a dumbfounded expression.

She shut her eyes tight, realizing what she just said. "Shit…"

Weiss turned around and sat in one of the nearby chairs in her sister's office, burying her face into her hands. Why the hell did she just say that?! Now Winter's going to ask more questions and probably won't let her go until she's answered every single one. However, after a few seconds, no questions came. A few more and still nothing. A deafening silence surrounded her and Weiss couldn't stand it. She looked back up at her sister and managed to glare at her. But Winter wasn't angry like she thought she'd be, but rather she looked confused as well as tense.

"So...you and Ruby were friends?"

The confused expression Winter gave her was enough for Weiss to end her glare and sigh as she sunk into her seat. She hated how she suddenly felt guilty for lying to her sister. "Yes…"

"But-"

"Can we not talk about this right now?" Weiss looked at her sister with pleading eyes, begging for her to just drop the topic. She wasn't in the mood right now to explain everything to her sister at the moment.

Winter was silent for a moment, further fueling Weiss' anxiety, but she eventually nodded. "Okay. Okay, I understand. I won't pry."

"Thank you...I promise I'll explain when I'm feeling up for it. Now if you excuse me, I think I'm gonna head home early." Weiss got up from her chair and was about to walk out of the office.

"Weiss, wait." Winter walked behind her desk and opened a drawer, pulling out a small blue and white box. "I managed to get your patches that Saphron prescribed for you from the pharmacy yesterday. I was gonna give them to you after practice but, since you're going home early…"

Weiss hesitantly took the box and stared at it for a moment, briefly skimming over the directions and such before finally smiling at her sister. With everything that has happened with Ruby, Weiss had completely forgotten her doctor's appointment with Saphron. Yet despite her forgetting about her patches, Winter didn't forget and even managed to pick them up for her. Despite how stern and unemotional her sister portrayed herself, deep down Winter loved her deeply and always went out of her way to support her.

"Thanks...For taking care of me so much. I'm Sorry for being such a hassle and-"

Winter suddenly gave her a tight but brief hug that caught Weiss completely off guard, lasting only a second before pulling away. But that one second was probably the closest Weiss had ever felt with her older sister in years if not ever, both literally and figuratively. "Don't apologize. I know I can be...difficult, but just remember that I'm always here for you no matter what."

Weiss couldn't stop herself from smiling even if she tried, she gave Winter another hug, but unlike her sister, she had no interest in letting go after just a second. Winter was surprised by the sudden act of affection but eventually relaxed and hugged her back.

"Thank you, Winter."


	9. Dysfunctional

Ruby stared at her calculus homework as she spun her pencil between her fingers. The sound of about a dozen people eating and chatting acted as static noise for Ruby. Little Miss Fortune was probably the town's best local restaurant, it's maroon polished floor and spotless wooden furniture gave it a warm and welcoming aura. Many families dined here on special occasions and even more people came simply to have a good meal and maybe even chat with friends and coworkers.

Ruby's uncle really outdone himself after being fired from Beacon. He had saved money his entire life just for his long held dream of opening a restaurant. It was also one of the many things Ruby missed after moving to the city. Her uncle's cooking was always something she and her family looked forward to every Friday.

She hung her head, mentally exhausted after such a horrid day. She had thought that she could distract herself with math, but boy was she wrong. At this point, she'd rather watch paint dry than to see another number for the foreseeable future.

Deciding it was futile to continue, Ruby put away her math homework in her backpack and simply resigned to watching the customers and resting her head in her hand. She did everything in her power to keep herself distracted. Counting the amount of customers, making up their conversations in her head, she even resorted to trying to eavesdrop on the family eating in the booth behind her. Despite all this, she eventually ran out of things to do and went to her last resort. Her phone.

She began digging into her backpack for her phone along with her earbuds. She opened up a tower defense game she enjoyed and logged in. It was a pretty basic game, nothing too special aside from being based off of a show she enjoyed. Using a deck full of characters from the show, the goal was to destroy the enemy's towers before the timer ran out.

After a few winning rounds, Ruby's luck ran out and she began having a losing streak. In her current game, her opponent spammed a bunch of cheap but weaker cards, which mostly consisted of monsters or minions rather than actual characters, and overwhelmed her. When the match was over and she lost, Ruby huffed and dropped her phone onto the table.

Having exhausted all her options to keep herself distracted, Ruby began fiddling with her thumbs. The urge to cut creeped up on her as the stress and emotions she felt earlier slowly returned. School was probably over by now and she was sure her uncle would come to Little Miss Fortune before heading home, meaning Raven will soon tell him about her cutting. All she could do is wait, alone with her thoughts and nothing to keep her mind occupied.

Then, almost as if the world could feel Ruby's fear, it decided to do exactly that as she saw her Uncle enter the restaurant, along with a rather unhappy looking Yang as well. Ruby sunk deeper into her seat as she watched Qrow gesture for Yang to go sit with Ruby and then he headed off into the kitchen where Raven was sitting in a small office. Yang sat across from Ruby, keeping her hands stuffed in her leather jacket. She then started absent mindedly searching the pockets of her cargo pants.

"Crap, no gum…Hey Rubes, you got an-"

"Nope." Ruby didn't bother looking at Yang as she resumed using her phone to keep herself busy.

Yang looked at her for a moment, no doubt bothered by her attitude. "Geez, what's your problem?"

Ruby's grip on her phone tightened as she shot Yang a glare. The urge to yell was strong. She wanted to go off on Yang for her irresponsible behavior lately, for being unreliable and acting like such a child around Raven. But she held her tongue and returned her gaze to her phone. "Nothing…"

"Whatever. Oh! You want to go to the beach with me? Sun's having another concert with his band, they're trying to go have one each day seven days in a row, todays their third day and-"

"Nope." Ruby hated parties, and a concert was no different, even if it was only a couple dozen people at most. Besides, the last time she went to one...no, she didn't want to think about that, she needed to focus on the mobile game.

_'Don't think about it, just focus on destroying this guy's towers and not on Reese's_-Damn it!" The game over screen appeared after her central tower was destroyed, big red letters spelling out "DEFEAT" in the center of the screen. Ruby closed the game and took out her earbuds before shoving the phone back into her backpack.

"Calm down, it's just a game." Yang chided with a laugh.

Ruby didn't say anything. Yang was right of course but that didn't change the fact that she's angry right now. If she didn't cut herself soon...damn it, she didn't know what to do if she didn't. It's not like she's tried other things to calm herself down, they just never seemed to work. At the moment she's a like bomb just waiting to go off and with a sensitive fuse to go along with it.

_'Yang didn't really do anything wrong right now, no need to get angry over spilled milk and then take it out on her.'_ Ruby took a deep breath and finally looked at Yang. "Why did Qrow bring you here anyways?"

"Oh he just wants me to work here, thinks it'll be good for me and all that."

"Maybe it would..." Ruby looked over at the doors that led into the kitchen, there was no doubt that Raven and Qrow were talking about her right now. A sudden guilt creeped up on her as she imagined Qrow's reaction upon finding out that she cuts herself.

"Welp, I don't know about you, but I got places to be." Yang suddenly stood up and left the booth. "I'm going to Sun's concert, your welcome to join me sis if you change your mind."

"Wha-wait! Yang!" Ruby stood up from her seat but didn't follow, staring daggers at the back of her sister's head. "Damn it, Yang! Get back here!"

Yang didn't listen as she made her way to the exit and disappeared. Ruby plopped herself back down and slammed her fists on the table, causing a loud bang that didn't go unnoticed by the restaurant's dozen or so patrons. "God damn it."

* * *

Raven sat at the desk in the small office of her brother's restaurant, reading the so-called Parent-Fact Sheet that the school counselor gave her. It was rather simple and short, telling her a bunch of do's and don'ts. She had reread it several times already, wondering what the hell she's gonna do. She may be Ruby's Guardian from a legal standpoint, but she wasn't stupid. She's an over-glorified babysitter for her ex's kids and nothing more. If it wasn't for Qrow guilt tripping her, she would have never agreed to take Yang and Ruby in.

"If only Qrow didn't drink so much, the fucking judge would have let him have them." Raven crumpled the paper in her fist before tossing onto the desk. She'd be lying if she said she didn't care about the kids, but that's exactly what she'd do. Lying was the only thing she was good at, well, other than fighting her way out of a bar brawl and riding a motorcycle that is. She's been lying her way out of so much crap all her life, that was until her luck ran out and she couldn't nearly lost the old Branwen Family homean and couldn't find a job, forcing her to run to the one thing she never relied on. Family.

Her own parents were pretty much useless, a bunch of good for nothings that somehow thought it was a good idea to have a couple of kids with low end careers while doing shady work whenever it popped up. Karma had them in her crosshairs though and Raven's parents died not too long after her and her brother became adults, leaving the Branwen twins nothing but their troublesome family legacy, including the ire of the town's ever so influential Schnee family.

Raven sighed and chugged the rest of her can of beer, drowning the useless thoughts away. She looked up at the ceiling, feeling helpless for the first time in a long time. "Summer...what the hell am I supposed to do?"

"The day's been that bad, huh?"

Raven didn't take her eyes off the ceiling, she didn't need to know that her brother was leaning in the doorway. "Ruby's cutting herself."

Raven glanced over at Qrow to see his reaction. His usual cocky but relaxed smile disappeared in an instant and looked to be at a loss for words. "Are...are you sure?"

"Yep. got called in by the School Counselor. Saw her scars myself." Raven swirled her can of beer, a small amount left at the bottom. "I could tell she's been at it for a while, judging by how old some of the scars are."

"Damn…" Qrow walked over to the minifridge by the desk where he kept his alcohol and took out a can of beer for himself as well as a second one for Raven. He tossed her the second can and she caught it effortlessly.

"Yeah. The counselor advised that Ruby gets professional help."

"But we can't afford it."

"I know."

"I'm already paying a lot of money for Tai's lawyer for fuck sake."

"I know." Raven opened her can of beer and chugged it all at once, finishing it off with a sigh. "On the bright side, the counselor also wants to have her come in for some sessions or whatever. So at least that's something."

Qrow was silent as he took his time taking a few sips from his own can. "I guess it looks like we're gonna have two new employees instead of one."

Raven quirked a brow. "What?"

Qrow took a longer swig before answering. "I was gonna have Yang come in and work as a waitress, keep her busy outside of school. I wasn't considering it before, but it looks like Ruby might end up needing it too, that way someone's keeping an eye on her and it'll help, who knows."

"I guess…" Raven wasn't sure she liked the idea of having Yang work at Little Miss Fortune, she knew her brother was right but that only made her hate the idea more. Yang was already tough to deal with without having to see her for most of the day, and she's already way in over her head with Ruby's self harm issue to deal with.

Just then, a knock came from the doorway of the cramped office and both Branwens turned to see Ruby standing in the doorway, looking rather angry.

"Yang ran off. Again."

"Damn her!" Raven snapped. She has had it with Yang's bullshit. She got up from her chair and grabbed her coat off the back of it. The sun was setting by now and so it was sure to be a bit cold outside. "Do you know where she went?"

"The beach, again." Ruby stated it was obvious, as if there was nowhere else Yang would be.

"I swear, if she has a single drop of alcohol in her mouth by the time I get there, I'm gonna-"

"Ground her?" Qrow interrupted her before she could even finish the threat. Honestly, what she had in mind was much worse than Qrow's suggestion.

"That's the problem, she's already grounded."

* * *

The sound of rock music and people cheering and chanting drowned out any other sounds. If she was asked what the song was about, Yang couldn't give a straight answer, something about the morning light if she had to guess. Honestly, Yang didn't really care much for the song and in fact, wasn't even paying attention to it as she was more focused on the can of beer in her hand. She was finally getting a slight buzz after her eleventh can of beer. Or at least she thinks it's her eleventh, it could have easily been her fifteenth.

Either way, Yang was just glad she finally had some beer and friends to hang out with. Being stuck in her mother's home for a month until her and her sister's transcripts went through so they could attend school was beyond agonizing. Sure her uncle Qrow was fun to be with but he wasn't exactly the type of uncle to go to concerts or parties, not that there were any to attend in Vytal. Plus, he wasn't always around as he lived separately and had a restaurant to run

So, when she heard that some guy named Sun likes throwing a concert at the beach last week, Yang made it a habit of going to the little concert whenever she could. Just over the weekend, Sun and his friends did a concert two days in a row, with today being their third. Apparently they were trying to challenge themselves, trying to have a concert seven days straight.

Going to school and coming home to see Raven was not exactly fun for Yang, and Ruby just studied or moped around in her room after school, leaving Yang to find her own fun. And Sun offered the best fun she could find in the small town of Vytal.

The beach was pretty much empty, aside from the dozen or so fangirls and guys. Yang had kept her party-going attire simple, a form fitting tank top underneath her favorite and only leather jacket and a pair of jeans with a few small holes in them that may or may not have been there when she bought them. Yang honestly couldn't remember.

The ocean was a mere 10 feet away from where Sun and his friends had set up their makeshift stage that seemed to be made of nothing but plywood. The waves, however, were drowned out by the sound of music and the cheering crowd that Sun's band had managed to attract.

Yang cheered at Sun and his friends as they finished off their final song on stage, though her voice was drowned out by the dozen or so people surrounding her. Sun and his friends weren't really famous or anything, just a local band that was apparently pretty popular with the girls if the crowd was anything to go by. Hell, some were even holding up hand-made posters of the band members.

After another can of beer, Yang could finally say she was drunk. It wasn't the first time as she had gone to plenty of parties before, despite her Stepmother and-No, Summer is her mother, Raven isn't her mother regardless of what her DNA or birth certificate said, Summer was the only woman whom Yang could and would call her Mother. Summer was the one that raised her and treated her as if she was her own daughter after all. Not that...other woman.

Yang groaned at the thought of Raven and grabbed another can of beer. "Nope, not drunk enough…"

"Hey, might want to slow down there, blondie. Don't want to ruin your pretty hair now."

a random guy stumbled upon Yang and he was reek with the smell of booze. The guy was casual yet he was obviously trying to break the ice to flirt. Yang had practically heard it before, maybe not those exact words but it was essentially the same regardless. A drunk man in China is the same as a drunk man in Germany, or at least that's what her Uncle once said while also being drunk himself.

"Shut it pal, I just want to get drunk and forget about my problems." Yang didn't even bother to look at the guy as she chugged the entirety of her new can of beer in one go.

"Maybe I could help you forget all about your problems. How about you and I-"

"One more word and the only thing you're gonna be fucking tonight is the fish at the bottom of the ocean." Yang continued to not look at the guy as she grabbed another beer from the ice chest sitting in the sand.

"Excuse me?! Who the hell do yo-"

"Shay!" Sun cut in between Yang and the guy now known as Shay. "Why don't you just go to a bar if you're gonna hit on girls all day. Besides, pretty sure she can kick your ass from mainstreet all the way to Schnee Manor, she aint worth it."

Shay scoffed and grumbled as he walked away from the two blondes. Sun then turned to face Yang and grabbed a beer of his own.

"Sorry about that. Anyway, what do you think, Yang? Pretty cool concert, right?"

"It's pretty good, the music was decent but I have to admit, I stayed for the beer." Yang gave Sun a toothy grin before taking a drink from whatever number her current can of beer was.

"Hey at least you enjoyed yourself, Right?" His smile slowly turned to frown as he noticed all the empty cans of beer littered all across the sand near Yang's feet. "...By the way, um, how many beers have you had? Cuz you're looking a little tipsy there."

"Eleven...I think? Maybe fifteen-wait no, definitely nineteen." Yang finished her current can of beer and grabbed another. "I think. I honestly haven't been counting, been going by how drunk I feel instead."

Sun did a spit take, and luckily no one was in front of him to get hit by the torrent of beer that erupted from his mouth. "Geez, you've only been here for like fifteen minutes at most!"

Yang shrugged. "What can I say, a girl needs her beer." Yang took a sip of her beer before eyeing Sun's attire. He wore an unbuttoned shirt and rolled up the sleeves of his jeans, showing off his calves and ankles. "Aren't you cold dressed like that?"

Sun did a shrug of his own. "Nah, I'm used to it anyways. And besides-" Sun pointed at his abs with both hands and wore an overly proud smile "Gotta display the goods to the ladies, right?"

Yang let out a confident laugh as she crushed her now empty can. "I've seen better."

Sun puffed out his chest with his fists on his hips. "Oh ya? Who's got better abs than Sun Wukong?"

"That's easy." Yang lifted her tank top up, stopping just below her breasts and revealing her own set of abs. "This girl does!"

Sun's eyes shot open at the sight of Yang's abs, slack jaw and almost speechless. "Holy shit…. those are pretty damn good abs."

Yang shrugged as she pulled her top back down. "Eh, six years of boxing and going undefeated in my last school's boxing team does that to ya."

Sun bowed towards Yang, mocking many kung fu movies Yang guess he has probably watched. "I admit defeat, Yang Xaio Long. You definitely have the better looking abs out of the two of us."

Yang laughed at the sight and she could finally feel the alcohol kicking in. "Sweet! What do I win?"

"How does being locked up in jail for underage drinking sound?" a third and much older, stern voice joined in.

Yang didn't need to turn around to know who was standing behind her. Yang turned around to face Raven, nearly tumbling over in the process. Yep definitely drunk enough now. Even her voice was already slurred. "The fuck do you want, Raven?"

* * *

Raven could have easily just hoisted Yang over her shoulder and simply tossed her into the back of her brother's pickup truck and took her home. But sadly, that wouldn't be very motherly of her, maybe, she honestly was still trying to figure out where the fine line between good parent and bad parent was. Hey, at least she's trying! The boy her daughter was talking to had slowly sneaked off and Yang either didn't notice or didn't care, maybe a mix of both judging by how many empty cans were loitering around her. Either way, Raven wasted no time to grab her daughter's arm.

"Come on we're leaving."

"Fuck that!" Yang ripped her arm away from Raven and took a step back. "Since when the hell do you care, anyways?"

"Get in the truck, now!" Raven commanded, she didn't have time for this, Ruby was waiting in the truck and she needed to get both of the girls home before the police decided to show up and crash whoever's beach party this was.

Yang simply chuckled as she was about to take another sip of the beer that was still in her hand. However, just before she could bring it to her lips, Raven snatched the beer from her hand and tossed it on the ground. "Hey, what the fuck do you-"

"You're not allowed to be drinking. Last I checked, you're not twenty one." Yang suddenly burped and Raven was almost impressed, almost. "How many beers have you had?"

Yang suddenly had a lazy looking smug smile on her face. "Says the woman who had her first beer at the age of thirteen. Also... twenty four beers. I think."

Raven cursed Qrow's name under her breath. Obviously he told Yang and probably even Ruby that story from when she and him were children. Having lost her patience with her daughter, she went to grab Yang's arm again, but missed as her daughter whipped her arm out of the way. "Yang, I am warning you."

"Or what? You're gonna-Ruby? Hey, what are you-"

A loud crack was heard over all the chatter among the party goers, causing some of the people in the vicinity to turn their heads to the source. Raven couldn't believe what she just saw. Ruby had just came out of nowhere and slapped Yang across the face open handed.

"Ow! What the fuck, Ruby?!" Yang held her hand up to her cheek, a red mark partially visible underneath her hand.

"Stop being such a fucking idiot! Do you think dad would want you to be out here!?" Ruby, the girl who Raven had shrugged off as nothing but a quiet wallflower, looked furious. Her eyes were like daggers aimed only at Yang as they glistened from the tears that Ruby was no doubt holding back.

"The fuck are you talking about!?" Yang was the last person Raven ever suspected of being able to be angry with Ruby, yet here they were. The two sisters looking like they we're ready to tear into one another.

"You act like you're the only one who's suffering! But you're not! You're not the one who lost their mom!"

Yang nearly flinched at that, but her anger was quick to cover it up as it only got stronger. "She was my mom too!"

"You still have your mom! You have Raven, and unlike you, I can actually see that she's at least trying!"

"Fuck that!" Yang got right up to Ruby, now inches apart from each other. "Summer is-"

"Dead! My mother is dead! Not yours, mine!"

That was the last straw for Yang. Raven didn't see it coming and had no time to intervene. And neither did Ruby. Yang grabbed a hold of Ruby's shirt by the callar with one arm, which caused Ruby to swiftly grab onto her sister's arm with both hands as she was lifted up in the air. Raven knew she should put a stop to this, but she was just too awed by how all of this just wasn't right. She never thought she'd ever see these two fight like this. Ruby tried to swing her right arm at Yang, but Yang caught it in a tight grip that made Ruby wince in pain.

"Yang!" Raven yelled at the top of her lungs, causing Yang to look at her, then back at Ruby before her eyes widened in fear. Just underneath Yang's grip on Ruby's forearm, there was a dark red stain on the pure white sleeve of Ruby's dress shirt. Yang let go and dropped Ruby who landed on her butt in the sand. Yang looked mortified as she watched Ruby clutch her now bleeding arm, with Ruby only giving her a tear stained glare.

"R-Ruby...I…"

Ruby got up and ran without a second thought. Yang was about to run after her but Raven grabbed onto her arm. She lifted her free hand, ready to slap her daughter for what she had done. But Raven couldn't bring herself to do it. Not after seeing the monstrous guilt Yang had in her eyes as she too started to cry. Raven slowly lowered her arm and dragged Yang to the truck. The only bright side she could find was the fact that Ruby had run towards the same direction as said truck.

But relief filled Raven's very being when she found Ruby, leaning against the passenger door of the truck while holding her forearm where Raven remembered there being bandages. It now occured to Raven that she never did ask about those bandages as she suddenly recalled how the school counselor mentioned that Ruby's friend found her bleeding.

Raven pulled Yang towards the truck and had her stand beside Ruby, with both of their backs against the passenger side door. Ruby took a small step away from her sister as she struggled to maintain control over her sniffling and silent crying.

"Yang." Raven didn't hide how angry she was, nearly growling as she said her daughter's name. Yang barely moved as she stared at the ground, prompting Raven to take a deep breath and try again in a calmer voice. "Yang, apologize. We aren't leaving until you two settle this."

It took longer than Raven's anger allowed, but Yang eventually managed to lift her head and faced Ruby. She slowly raised her arm as if to touch Ruby, her hand just about to reach Ruby's shoulder. "R-Ruby...I-I was, I mean, I'm drunk...I didn't mean to-"

"S-Shut up…" Ruby cut her off, her own voice just barely coherent. "M-Mom always hated it whenever you went to parties and then came home a little drunk."

"I know…she'd probably have my head if she saw me now..." Yang retracted her hand before it even got to Ruby's shoulder. She then looked down at Ruby's arm that was bleeding. "What happened?"

"None of your business…" Ruby tried to hide her arm from Yang's view, but it was a futile effort. There was a brief silence as Yang furrowed her brows a bit before widening in realization.

"You're cutting again...aren't you?" There was pain and fear in Yang's quiet voice and Ruby's only response was a choked sob as she swiftly nodded her head. Yang was quick to wrap Ruby into a tight hug, with Ruby struggling at first but quickly gave up. "I've been a shitty big sister."

"N-No shit." There was a weak laugh hidden under Ruby's trembling voice and Raven saw her lips just barely resemble a smile.

The sight before her made Raven realize that she really hasn't been trying as hard as she should have in order to take care of these two girls who were both still hurting over Summer's death and the sudden changes in their lives. When they first showed up, Raven had no idea what to do with them, Yang wouldn't listen to her and Ruby barely interacted with her at all. Raven had to wipe her own eyes upon seeing the two girls seem to make peace with each other. She let Ruby and Yang have their moment a little longer before finally walking up to the two of them and crossing her arms.

"Well, it's nice to finally see you two settle things, but you're still in deep trouble, Yang."

"I know." Yang glared at her mother, but it had no bite behind it. Whether it was because Yang was softening up to her or because she didn't have the energy, Raven couldn't tell.

"And Ruby." Raven uncrossed her arms and bent over a little to be level with Ruby, who sadly didn't look back at her. "I'm not gonna pretend to be Sum- um, your mom. She was my friend, or I at least hope she still thought of me as such after all these years. Anyways, the point I'm trying to make is that I'm trying my best, and I'll be the first to admit that my best isn't really gonna win me parent of the year award, let alone parent of the week."

Yang scoffed. "That's one way to put it."

"Shut it." Raven gave her a brief glare before returning her attention to Ruby. "What I'm trying to get at is that I want you to know that if anything's troubling you, either of you, I'll do whatever I can to support you two."

Ruby still didn't look at her, but at least she didn't look as distraught anymore. "O-Okay."

"Okay, now let's head on home. I'm sure Ruby would like a new bandage on her arm."

And with that, Raven, Yang, and Ruby all climbed into the truck. Yang sat between Ruby and Raven, like usual, and kept an arm around Ruby who was content to lean against her sister. For the first time since Raven had taken them in, both girls looked at least somewhat peaceful. Yang didn't look like she was ready to beat the crap out of someone and Ruby didn't look completely like a hollowed soul. Now Raven just had to figure out how to maintain this fragile peace after such a painful process of acquiring it.

* * *

"Ow ow ow!"

"Don't be such a baby,."

Ruby winced as her cut stung like a thousand needles from the hydrogen peroxide. "Still, it hurts like hell…"

Raven began wrapping Ruby's arm in a fresh roll of bandages while Ruby herself sat on one of the wooden chairs in the dining room. Yang meanwhile sat nearby, staring at Ruby's scars with a grim expression and drinking a glass of water. Once the bandages were wrapped, a silence fell before them, none of them knowing what to do or say. Ruby wanted to get up and just go to bed without saying anything but she knew, or rather expected, Raven or Yang would want to talk about the proverbial, depressing elephant in the room.

"So…" Raven began with a stern expression. "You want me to go through your room looking for your knife, or are you going to cooperate and give it to me?"

"How do you know I have a knife?" Ruby tried to feign ignorance. A stupid thing to do as she quickly realized.

"Ruby." Raven glared.

"I don't-"

"Ruby...just give her your knife…" Ruby glanced over at Yang who wore a pleading look. "Please."

After a deep breath, Ruby barely nodded before slowly rising from the wooden chair and made her way to her bedroom upstairs, with Raven and Yang close behind. She felt like a prisoner being escorted to her cell, with the two guards just behind her on both flanks. Once in her room, they watched her get on her knees to open her bottom drawer and dug out her knife from underneath her underwear. It was a small thing with it's blade sheathed inside the grip, It could easily be concealed if she made a fist while holding it. The grip itself was black with a rose engraved in it's tough plastic furniture. Out of instinct, she pressed a small button, causing the blade to swing open in a flash. It's red metallic surface complimented it's black grip nicely, with "Crescent Rose" engraved on the side of the blade in fine cursive.

Ruby looked over at Raven and Yang and then back at the knife before closing it. She stared at it for another few seconds before holding it out with her hand for either of them to take it. Raven walked over and grabbed one end of the sheathed knife, with Ruby unable to let go of the other end.

"Ruby, you need to let go."

For a second, Ruby didn't let go and only tightened her grip before finally releasing her tight hold and letting her arm drop to her side. Raven walked back over to the doorway where Yang stood and whispered something to Yang before leaving the room. Ruby remained where she was and sat with her legs crossed, unsure what to do with herself now. She ignored the sound of Yang's footsteps before she was suddenly wrapped in a hug from behind, with blonde hair visible in the corner of her eyes.

"Why didn't you come to me?" Yang asked, almost pleading really. "Why didn't you tell me that you started cutting again? I'm your big sister, it's my job to help you, to protect you…"

Ruby didn't say anything, it wasn't hard to figure out and she knew Yang already knew the answer, she's a lot smarter than she looks after all. But Ruby's silence only made Yang hug her tighter.

"I promised dad that I'll take care of you…" Ruby still didn't budge as Yang spoke, simply sitting there like a lifeless doll. "God I'm such an idiot…"

"I didn't want you to worry about me...I can take care of myself." It was a lie, mostly to herself. She couldn't take care of herself, not if she was trying too hard to keep her problems locked away inside her.

"But we're family, Rubes." Yang turned Ruby around a bit so that she could look into her sister's eyes. "And family takes care of eachother, no matter what."

Ruby stared at Yang's warm but glistening lilac eyes that just radiated love. However, despite Yang's obvious guilt and talk of family, it didn't change the fact that Yang didn't really give her the opportunity to go to her for help. "Is that why you always ran off, feeling sorry for yourself ever since we came back to Vytal? Leaving me alone?"

Yang's guilt grew, visibly so as she was caught off guard. "I-I...I didn't know that you-"

"That I was cutting again?" Ruby began glaring at her sister, that anger from earlier slowly rose again. "You had plenty of opportunity. What about over the summer? You know, right after dad was arrested and we had to be watched over by child services? You know, when they had to place us in an orphanage until Qrow managed to convince Raven to take us in? Where were you then? Oh that's right! You were sneaking out with your so called friends to drink your sorrows away! Do you have any idea how scared I was!?"

"I-I…"

"I thought I'd never see you again! That I'd never see dad again!" Ruby didn't bother suppressing her tears, she didn't care. She had been bottling all this up for nearly a year and she just couldn't hold it in anymore. "I know you were dealing with mom's death in your own way, but I needed you!"

"R-Ruby...I'm sorry…" Yang herself was crying now, but Ruby couldn't bring herself to care. In fact, Ruby felt somewhat glad that she was crying, finally realizing just how much she fucked up and hurt her.

Ruby looked away from her sister and hugged herself, folding her knees to her chest. "Being sorry doesn't change anything."

"Ruby, p-please...I-" Yang was about to reach out but Ruby slapped her hand away.

"No! ...I don't want to talk to you anymore."

A painful silence fell between them as Yang managed to suppress the little sobs she was making, with Ruby sitting silently and staring at her closet where a box of her belongings sat idly and untouched. Yang slowly got to her feet without a word and walked over to the door that had never been shut since they entered. She looked back at Ruby, wiping a fleeing tear away.

"I promise...I'm here for you now, whenever you need me I'll be here."

Ruby didn't bother responding, anything she said now would just continue to fuel her anger even more. She heard Yang close the door behind her as she left and Ruby continued to sit with her knees pressed to her chest. She wiped away her tears that were quickly replaced by more, her heart beating against her ribcage as her anger loitered within her.

After what felt like an eternity, Ruby crawled over to her closet, feeling too weak to get up and walk over. Once at her destination, sitting before a rather large box that still had tape over it's flaps, she stared at her own handwritten label. "Ruby's stuff." written in appropriately red ink, large and hastily written as if in a hurry. Ruby felt herself become tense the longer she stared at the box. She knew what was inside, obviously, but that was why she was so hesitant to actually open it.

If she opened it, there was no going back. She promised herself that she wouldn't open it after coming back to vytal. That she would try her hardest to pretend like the past didn't happen. That she wasn't broken, hoping that Weiss and her other old friends would still be her friends. The mere thought of how her friends might react, how Weiss would see her if she saw what kind of person she had become over the years scared her in a way. But Weiss already saw her at her most vulnerable state, and she betrayed her, ratted her out to the school counselor. So why was she still worried about what Weiss or anyone else thought?

Ruby reached out and ran her fingers over the tape that held the box shut. What was the point of it all? Why hide? It wasn't the first time she asked herself those questions in the past couple of weeks after returning to Vytal. She kept telling herself that it was to start over. To meet her old friends again. To forget all about her life in the city...even if it meant forgetting all about the good things that happened.

Anxiety managed to slowly pervade it's way into her body as she struggled to decide what to do. Her heart continues beating against her chest, her fingers trembled and her breathing became heavy as the loose clothing of her button up shirt and skirt suddenly felt suffocating to the point where she frantically started taking them off, leaving herself alone and lying on the floor of her room in nothing but her underwear and bra. She felt vulnerable now, the scars on her wrist and the necklace resting between her breasts on complete display, her personal secrets free for anyone to see.

"Fuck it..." Ruby shot up as her anxiety quickly sent her over the edge, glaring at the box with determined eyes. The contents of her Pandora's Box aren't something to hide away. They were the things that made her who she was. They were mementos, memories that both haunted her and gave her joy.

All hesitation she had earlier left her completely, she crawled back over to her dresser and tossed her folded up underwear left and right as she dug through her bottom drawer. After tossing out every pair, she finally found what she was searching for. She held it delicately in her hand, it's baby blue grip that fit in the palm of her hand was tremendously light. She pressed a small button, causing it's blade to swing out effortlessly and with beautiful speed. Ruby traced a finger along the side of it's white blade, admiring how pure and innocent it looked. Unlike her other knife, She never once used this specific knife for anything. No one actually knew of its existence, having bought it custom made with money she managed to save from doing chores back before her mother died.

"Sorry...I never, ever wanted to use you…but I really need that box open..."

Ruby did her best to ignore the burning urge as she stared at her knife's blade, but her will was weak and her eyes darted down to her wrist, staring at the scars that plagued her. She shouldn't, they will no doubt search her for new scars now whenever they feel the need to. But it burned so badly, as if her body or mind was begging her. Her anger still boiled inside her, fueling her anxiety and fear.

She didn't want to hear Yang say how sorry she was again while trying to help her, not after being so useless to Ruby for so long. Weiss betrayed her, ratting her out the very second she caught her. And Raven knew nothing of her problems. Ruby was left with no other choice but to rely on the one thing that always made her pain go away. The one thing that made her feel relief.

She bit her lip and shut her eyes tight, one last effort to fight it off as her grip on the knife tightened. "I-I shouldn't…"

She could hear her heart pounding in her ears, her hands trembling slightly as they moved on their own accord down to her right thigh. She had never cut there, the only place she dared to do so was her right arm. But there are few places she could cut now without getting caught. If they found a new scar on her arm, everyone would worry about her even more, she'd be a bother to everyone as they tried to figure out what's wrong with her. Ruby finally opened her eyes, her hand holding the knife resting in her lap, her knuckles turned white with how tight her grip is.

_"See? I told you she'd look good in red."_

_"I don't deserve to be your friend…"_

Ruby shook her head violently as memories invaded her vision.

_"I love you, Ruby…"_

Her eyes shot open and were instantly glued to the pure white, stainless steel blade. No one was there to help her, Yang constantly proved to be unreliable. She didn't know Raven nor trust her enough to go talk to her. She's alone.

_"I can't take it anymore, Ruby! They won't leave me alone!"_

_"Ruby, stop fighting them! You're only making it worse!"_

Acting on instinct, Ruby pressed the knife against the soft flesh of her thigh, just an inch or two away from the band of her underwear. It's cold, unused blade caused goosebumps to ripple across her body as it easily drew blood. The pain was instant, like the area she was cutting burned and stung all at once. But in that pain she felt relief. Her blurry eyes watched the small trail of blood go down the side of her inner thigh and she immediately choked out a sobbing cry, causing her to bite her lip harder in an effort to stay quiet so that Yang and Raven wouldn't hear her.

_"It's okay, sweetie...I know, it's gonna be okay…"_

Adrenaline raced through her veins and she felt like she could finally think straight as her mind focused on the pain she felt in her thigh. It was much more intense than when she did it on her wrist, less of a sting and more of a powerful burn. With a heavy breath, she lifted her knife in her trembling hand and stared at the blood that stained it's previously pure and innocent blade, a drop slowly gliding it's way down it's edge.

Despite the light tears in her eyes and the intense pain in her thigh, she felt relief. Her anger slowly dissipated and her anxiety lessened. Fuck her sister, fuck Raven and fuck anyone who claimed to want to help her. If Yang wanted to be there for her, she wouldn't have constantly ran off! If Weiss wanted to help, why couldn't she be there for her herself? Why run straight to the counselor?

The only thing she could rely on is her knife.

And she hated relying on it. She made so much progress before her mother died and now look at her. Sitting in her so-called room wearing nothing but her underwear while continuing to ruin all that progress she made.

Ruby, with trembling hands, leaned over and reached for her first aid kit that sat in her now empty underwear drawer. She quickly pulled out a small box of band-aids and placed a few over her cut. It wasn't big enough to warrant using gauge and band-aids would help control the bleeding well enough. But now that she sat there, with her mind clearer, she remembered why she got the knife out in the first place. All she wanted to do was cut open that stupid box, and yet she let her emotions take control.

Once again, she slowly crawled her way over to the box and cut the tape with her bloody knife. She then gently placed the knife on the floor and pulled out one of the first items she was looking for. A bright, red leather jacket.

Ruby frowned upon seeing it, but quickly hugged it as it brought back both good and bad memories. She then set it down on the floor beside her and began digging through the box again. She quickly pulled out her skateboard to make it easier to search for the smaller things she wanted. She briefly admired the art of scattered rose petals on the bottom of the board before setting it down next to her leather jacket. She peaked her head back into the box and searched some more.

"….where is that choker?"

* * *

Heavy guilt weighed on Yang like a boulder as she walked down the stairs, slowly moving one leg after the other. She was on autopilot as her mind wrapped around the fact that she failed as a big sister. She failed her father. And most importantly, she failed Ruby.

She stumbled into the dining room like an undead corpse, where Raven was sitting at the table with Ruby's knife sitting in front of her. She eventually noticed Yang and gestured for her to sit, with Yang doing so without a word.

"I could hear Ruby's yelling from down here. Honestly, she has every right to be angry with you."

Yang didn't have it in her to argue. She hated that her mother was right. Ruby's anger is justified. "I'm a fuck up of a sister…"

Raven scoffed. "Ha, you aren't a fuck up. Trust me."

"What do you mean?" Yang glared at her mother. "Ruby is cutting herself again and I was too busy feeling sorry for myself that I wasn't there for her! I had one job and I fucked it all up."

Raven shook her head and sighed. "It's been a heavy day for her, lots happened. From her perspective, I'm sure it's like her whole world is falling apart because we found out. Just give her some time to calm down and then try talking to her again. Just don't push it, though."

Yang's glare disappeared as she now narrowed her eyes. "You're...surprisingly calm."

"I've been around the block, seen a lot of people who are worse off then you and Ruby combined." Raven picked up Ruby's knife off the table and inspected it, releasing it's blade and ran her fingers along the side of it. "This is custom made, where did she get this?"

Yang stared at the knife solemnly as she recalled the day she first saw the knife. "It was a gift…for her fourteenth birthday."

"From who? And who gives a little girl a knife for her birthday?"

Yang didn't answer. There was no reason for her to tell Raven anyways and besides, it didn't matter where the knife came from. She did her best to fake a yawn and stretched out her arms. "I think I'm gonna go to bed…"

"Yang-"

"Look, I'm not really sure I can answer your question, okay?" Yang avoided staring at the knife now and instead looked at the table. "It's kind of a sensitive topic for Ruby, ya know? And I really don't know if it's my place to say anything..."

"I got that much, but that wasn't what I was going to say." Raven closed the knife and set it back on the table. "Sit."

"But-"

"Sit. Now." Raven clearly wasn't messing around, so Yang reluctantly did as she was told.

They sat there for a moment in silence as Raven gathered up her thoughts. Yang was patient, but only because she really had nothing better to do. Eventually, Raven took a deep breath and placed one hand over the other on the table. "I know that you're not really...happy, to be here. Especially after how I kind of left you and Tai when you were a baby, but-"

"Ha! That's an understatement."

Raven pursed her lips as she tried to ignore her daughter's comment. "Right. Anyways, what I'm getting at is that you and I need to work together. For Ruby's sake. I can't do this alone and neither can you, and I think it should be obvious that our fighting all the time isn't helping Ruby in the slightest."

Yang furrowed her brows. "Why do you care?"

"What?"

Yang shot up from her chair and slammed her hands onto the table. "Why do you care? Ruby isn't related to you at all and last I checked, you ran off as soon as you could after I was born. What makes you think you can start being a mom-no, what makes you think you can just be part of this family again? You left us, me and dad both. Summer, the woman who treated me as if I were her own flesh and blood, dies and all the sudden you just magically appear and want to help us?"

Raven didn't say anything as she stared at Yang, her eyes furrowed as if she was angry, but her lips quivered slightly. "Well…"

"You're full of fucking shit, you know that?" Yang knew she was still affected by the beer she had earlier, but it didn't change the truth. Raven abandoned her and never bothered to show her face again for the last seventeen years.

Raven looked down at her hands, making it difficult for Yang to see her face. But Yang didn't need to look at her face to know that Raven was emotional right now. Her strained voice easily did that for her. "I made mistakes...a lot of mistakes, and I admit to them...I was an idiot back then and now…"

Raven lifted her head, a single trail of a tear marking her cheek down to her jaw. "Now I just want a second chance."


End file.
